2025 is the start of a new Mercedes chapter

It’s a new era for Mercedes in 2025. In the wake of seven-time World Champion Lewis Hamilton’s departure for Ferrari, the Silver Arrows have an exciting rookie replacement ready to step up to the big time. But can Mercedes also iron out the inconsistencies with their car that saw the squad go through an up-and-down season last year? Here’s all you need to know about the team ahead of the new campaign…

Drivers for 2025

Andrea Kimi Antonelli #12: Rookie season
George Russell #63: 3 Grand Prix wins, 5 pole positions, 15 podiums, 714 points, 128 starts

For the first time since the 2012 F1 season, Lewis Hamilton isn’t listed as a driver for the Brackley-based Mercedes team. In his place steps up 18-year-old Italian Kimi Antonelli, a youngster the Silver Arrows have huge faith in.

The squad have backed Antonelli since his karting days and he has had a remarkable rise through the single-seater rankings, featuring back-to-back titles in Formula 4 and Formula Regional and race wins in Formula 2.

LONDON, ENGLAND - FEBRUARY 18: George Russell of Great Britain and Mercedes AMG Petronas F1 Team — George Russell and Andrea Kimi Antonelli will be turning out for the Silver Arrows in 2025

Now the senior driver at the team, George Russell continues into his fourth season at Mercedes, with the Briton adding two victories to his name in 2024 (it could have been three but for a disqualification at the Belgian Grand Prix).

Prior to getting his chance at Mercedes, the 27-year-old made his debut on the F1 grid with Williams in a stint that lasted three seasons.

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What’s more, the Silver Arrows also have F1 veteran Valtteri Bottas to call upon if needed. The Finn had five highly-successful seasons himself at Mercedes between 2017 and 2021 – earning 10 Grand Prix victories – before he lost his seat to Russell.

After three seasons with Alfa Romeo/Kick Sauber, and unable to find a seat on the 2025 grid, the 35-year-old opted to return to Mercedes in a reserve role.

LONDON, ENGLAND - FEBRUARY 18: (L to R) Valtteri Bottas, Toto Wolff, Executive Director of Mercedes — Bottas (left) has re-joined Mercedes in a reserve role

Last season

Russell and Hamilton each recorded two victories through 2024, with Russell capitalising on a crash between front-runners Max Verstappen and Lando Norris to triumph in Austria before notching up another win around the streets of Las Vegas.

Hamilton was victorious in Belgium (albeit after his team mate was disqualified from the race win himself) but he also secured a remarkable, emotional win at Silverstone to end a 945-day victory drought. Not only that but it was a record-breaking ninth British Grand Prix success for the seven-time World Champion.

Despite these brief returns to winning ways, in truth 2024 represented another year of inconsistency for Mercedes following their struggles to get to grips with the ground effect regulations that came into play for 2022.

They ended last season a distant fourth in the Constructors’ Championship – their weakest result since 2012 – and the team’s period of dominance between 2014-2021 is looking even further away in the rear-view mirror.

NORTHAMPTON, ENGLAND - JULY 07: Race winner Lewis Hamilton of Great Britain and Mercedes celebrates — Hamilton's record-breaking British Grand Prix win was one of the moments of 2024

History

The Mercedes name is one of the most recognisable in the world, with it first appearing in Formula 1 all the way back in 1954. However, the company would withdraw completely from motorsport at the end of 1955.

It was in the late 1960s that the team we currently know as Mercedes started life in F1, then under the Tyrrell name. The squad was eventually sold to British American Racing (BAR), with the first season in their new guise coming in 1999.

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BAR would go on to partner with Honda, and became the Japanese manufacturer’s works outfit from 2006. But when Honda announced their withdrawal from F1 at the end of 2008, it sparked one of the sport’s greatest ever fairytales.

Ross Brawn and the team’s management stepped in to buy the outfit and, in 2009, the newly named Brawn GP famously went on to secure both the Drivers’ and Constructors’ Championships with Briton Jenson Button becoming World Champion.

After that one season as Brawn GP, Mercedes purchased the team to give the squad their current identity. With mild success from 2010 to 2013, the team then became the leading force in F1 from 2014 as they claimed eight Constructors’ titles, as well as every Drivers’ Championship between 2014 and 2020 (six for Hamilton and one for Nico Rosberg).

Lewis Hamilton (GBR) Mercedes AMG F1 celebrates with the team. Formula One World Championship, — Hamilton celebrates his first world title with Mercedes in 2014, his second overall at the time

Greatest achievement

Plenty of teams have enjoyed dominance in Formula 1, but Mercedes’ run of eight consecutive Constructors’ Championships between 2014 and 2021 remains a phenomenal achievement.

With Hamilton claiming six of his seven world titles in that period, and Nico Rosberg also taking the 2016 title, it was only Max Verstappen’s 2021 triumph that brought that run of Drivers’ Championships to an end.

While the Silver Arrows’ fortunes changed following the introduction of the 2022 regulations, could there be more success in the future – particularly with the advent of another set of regulation changes for 2026?

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ISTANBUL PARK, TURKEY - NOVEMBER 15: Lewis Hamilton, Mercedes-AMG Petronas F1, 1st position, and — Hamilton claimed his seventh world title in 2020, with Mercedes scoring eight consecutive Constructors' wins from 2014-2021

One key goal for 2025

Move on from Hamilton. The exit of the seven-time World Champion has brought an end to the most successful driver/team partnership in F1 history, but it’s time for Mercedes to fully embrace this new era.

Understandably the squad will want to have more on-track success compared to last year, but getting Antonelli up to speed as quickly as possible alongside Russell will be just as big a target.

And, for what it’s worth, the 18-year-old has been saying all the right things as he acknowledged that he didn't feel that he was Hamilton’s replacement and that “I really want to make my own story.”

There is plenty of hype surrounding the young Italian, and mistakes are to be expected in his rookie season. But if he is to realise his potential in the sport then the work starts now.