Lando Norris's Dominant Qualifying Stats Mask Yuki Tsunoda's Shocking Season

Lando Norris secured his maiden F1 drivers' title in 2025 with a dominant qualifying performance, achieving the best average grid position of the season. His supremacy in qualifying was a decisive factor in a year where overtaking was notoriously difficult, setting him apart from his rivals and laying the foundation for his championship victory.

Why it matters:

In a season defined by tight competition and limited passing opportunities, starting position was more critical than ever. Norris's ability to consistently qualify at the front gave him a fundamental advantage that his rivals, including Max Verstappen and Oscar Piastri, couldn't match. It also starkly highlights the performance gap within teams, exemplified by the massive disparity between Tsunoda and Verstappen, which likely influenced Red Bull's driver decisions for the following season.

By the numbers:

The qualifying data from the 24-race season paints a clear picture of the grid's hierarchy and the key stories that defined it.

• The Champion: Lando Norris's average qualifying position of 2.96 made him the only driver to average inside the top three all season.
• The Chasers: Oscar Piastri and Max Verstappen were close behind with averages of 3.04 and 3.5, respectively, forming a clear top tier.
• The Great Divide: A significant gap existed to the rest of the field. Charles Leclerc in fifth had an average of 6.21, while Kimi Antonelli in sixth was down at 8.58—over two positions worse than Leclerc.
• The Mercedes Story: Antonelli out-qualified his seven-time world champion teammate Lewis Hamilton, whose average dropped to 9.04 after three consecutive Q1 exits late in the season.
• The Shocker: Yuki Tsunoda's average of 12.58 was a full nine positions worse than teammate Verstappen's 3.5. This abysmal figure for a Red Bull driver was a primary factor in his demotion to a reserve role for 2026.
• The Bottom: Alpine's Franco Colapinto recorded the worst average on the grid at 16.94.

The bottom line:

The 2025 qualifying data tells a clear story of a two-tier grid. Norris's elite, consistent pace at the front was the foundation of his championship success. Conversely, the enormous gap between Verstappen and Tsunoda serves as a brutal reminder of the fine margins in F1, where a nine-place deficit in qualifying is simply unacceptable for a team with championship ambitions and directly cost Tsunoda his race seat.