Lando Norris will have to defy plenty of history to win the Formula 1 title this year.
There’s his friend-turned-rival Max Verstappen’s bid for a fifth title in a row. Just like the only driver to achieve that feat, Michael Schumacher, Verstappen is a hard racer who isn’t afraid to bend the rules — as Norris knows from bitter experience.
Then there’s Lewis Hamilton, the seven-time champion going for a record eighth title in 2025. It’s his first season with Ferrari, which is itching to end a wait for a drivers’ title going back to 2007.
Norris is the under-pressure favorite
Norris is widely considered the favorite after he and McLaren had a strong second half of 2024 — though not strong enough to beat Verstappen — but it could be the closest season in years.
McLaren seemed competitive in preseason testing last month but Norris has to watch out not only for Verstappen and Hamilton, but also for his own teammate Oscar Piastri, Ferrari’s Charles Leclerc and Mercedes’ George Russell. Five drivers from four different teams won the last six races of 2024.
“As much as we want to believe we’re the best, I guess we still want to feel like we’re underdogs. We have a lot to fight for,” Norris said last month. After slipping up from pole position in a few races last season, Norris insists he can thrive as the driver to beat.
“I know, coming into this season that for a lot of people I’m the favorite and as a team we’re the favorites,” Norris said. “I’ve always done much better under pressure. I’m able to think and to focus much more.”
Verstappen shows he’s still hungry
Ever since beating Hamilton to the 2021 title in a race that’s still controversial, Verstappen has been F1’s man to beat.
He’s long been clear he doesn’t want to stay in F1 into his 40s like Hamilton or Fernando Alonso, so could motivation be a factor in the Dutch driver’s bid for a fifth title? Verstappen says last season — when he tested Norris to the limit and sometimes beyond — shows he’s still hungry.
“My motivation is there because I think already last year it was not straightforward,” Verstappen said. “We had of course good wins, but I guess not as many as we would have liked, but we still won the championship.”
After a year when off-track events threatened to overwhelm Verstappen’s Red Bull team and his own father sparred with the management, Verstappen seems more settled at the start of his 11th season in F1. The team feels “like a second family,” he said last month.
Hamilton aims for title No. 8
Another title for Hamilton would break a tie with Schumacher for the most in F1 history.
The British driver proclaimed himself “invigorated” at F1’s glitzy season launch. Expectations from Ferrari’s “Tifosi” fans are so high that he could finally bring success to the Italian team that some cut down a tree to better watch Hamilton test the new SF-25 car.
“I know what a winning team looks and feels like,” he said last month. “The passion here is like nothing you’ve ever seen. They’ve got absolutely every ingredient they need to win a world championship. And it’s just about putting all the pieces together.”
Other contenders for the crown
Mercedes solved long-running car issues to win four of the last 14 races in 2024, including Hamilton’s emotional home win at the British Grand Prix. Three-time winner Russell is joined by 18-year-old rookie Andrea Kimi Antonelli, who starts his career with some valuable advice from Hamilton.
If they can’t challenge for the podium right away, other teams like Aston Martin might opt to switch focus early to their 2026 cars. Next year brings a big change in the regulations and getting a head-start could pay off for years to come.
Off-track tensions
Watch out too for a simmering feud between the drivers and the governing body, the FIA, whose president Mohammed Ben Sulayem wants to crack down on drivers swearing.
New rules mean fines starting at 40,000 euros ($42,000) and even potential suspensions and point deductions for repeat offenders. Drivers have previously raised concerns about where the money from fines goes, a string of firings of senior FIA staff and Ben Sulayem’s “own tone and language.”
Verstappen bids for 5th title and Hamilton’s at Ferrari as F1 prepares for a close fight in 2025
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Verstappen bids for 5th title and Hamilton’s at Ferrari as F1 prepares for a close fight in 2025
- Just like the only driver to achieve that feat, Michael Schumacher, Verstappen is a hard racer who isn’t afraid to bend the rules.
Egyptians take on South Africans in African Champions League semis
Egyptian giants Al Ahly are the dominant force in African football and have won 12 previous Champions League titles
CAPE TOWN: Two Egyptian clubs face two from South Africa this weekend in the semifinals of this season’s African Champions League in a rare bilateral contest.
Holders Al Ahly continue their bid for a fifth title in six seasons in Pretoria on Saturday against Mamelodi Sundowns, a side who once handed them a record defeat but have too often exited in the knockout stages after dominating the group phase.
Also on Saturday, Pyramids will be hoping to consolidate their fast-track emergence as a force in the African game when they take on Orlando Pirates in Soweto.
The return legs are both in Cairo next Friday with the winners advancing to the two-legged final at the end of May and in early June.
Egyptian giants Al Ahly are the dominant force in African football and have won 12 previous Champions League titles while the other three semifinalists have two triumphs between them — Pirates in 1995 and Sundowns in 2016.
But despite their strong track record, Ahly are not favorites after unconvincing performances in the league phase, where they were runners-up in their group.
There has been criticism of their Swiss coach Marc Koller in recent days after they also stumbled against Pyramids in the Egyptian league.
Sundowns handed Ahly a record 5-0 defeat in the 2019 quarter-finals and also scored five against them in Pretoria two years ago in the group phase.
But the South African club, owned by the family of Confederation of African Football president Patrice Motsepe, have a long history of falling short in the knockout rounds.
Pyramids are competing in the Champions League for only the second time.
The club was formed in 2008 but moved to Cairo a decade later after being taken over by Saudi investors and are well placed to win a first Egyptian championship at the end of this season.
Opponents Pirates were one of only two unbeaten sides in the group competition and have won three away matches in north Africa in this season’s campaign.
But they will need home success on Saturday to ensure a defendable lead to take to Cairo for the return leg.
It is not the first time clubs from two countries have clashed in both Champions League semifinals.
In the 2020, Al Ahly beat Morocco’s Wydad Casablanca 5-1 on aggregate in their semifinal, while Zamalek were too good for Raja Casablanca, winning 4-1 over their two ties.
Al Ahly edged Cairo rivals Zamalek 2-1 in the final in the Egyptian capital.
Bayern defender Stanisic sorry for pushing ball kid in Champions League loss
- “Every team in the world tries to run down the clock a little," Stanisic told German media
- “It was also maybe a bit stupid of me and I'm sorry that I pushed him”
MILAN: Bayern Munich defender Josip Stanisic has apologized for pushing a ball kid during the Champions League quarterfinal loss at Inter Milan.
Stanisic pushed the ball kid off his stool after the boy appeared to throw the ball away to delay Stanisic taking a throw-in during added time. Bayern were seeking another goal to force extra time and went on to lose Tuesday's game 4-3 on aggregate.
“Every team in the world tries to run down the clock a little. They did that a bit better than some others," Stanisic told German media in comments broadcast on Wednesday by sports website RAN.
“It was also maybe a bit stupid of me and I'm sorry that I pushed him. In that moment I was just really annoyed that these little games were being played and I found that unnecessary.”
Inter's coaching staff spotted the incident immediately and appealed to the referee. Stanisic was not booked.
UEFA didn't immediately respond to a request for comment on whether it would pursue any disciplinary proceedings against Stanisic.
One-legged footballer shines in German amateur league
- The social worker now showcases that passion weekly with Bavarian club TSV Brand’s second team
- Coach Ulf Forster highlights Kaiser’s tangible contribution during his debut appearance
ECKENTAL, Germany: Pierre Kaiser has truly mastered the art of ball juggling. And when it comes to the classic rondo drill, the 35-year-old is right in the thick of it. What makes it special: in 2007, Pierre lost his leg in a train accident. Since then, football has become his greatest passion.
The social worker now showcases that passion weekly with Bavarian club TSV Brand’s second team, where his remarkable determination has earned him a spot in regular league play this season.
“I moved out here, to the countryside with my wife, and our neighbor came over and said, ‘Oh, you played amputee football? Well, you’re coming along to training’,” Kaiser recalled. “At first, I didn’t really want to, but he kept asking, and eventually I joined the guys — and they were just an incredibly friendly bunch. It was so much fun.”
His impact extends beyond mere participation. Coach Ulf Forster highlights Kaiser’s tangible contribution during his debut appearance.
“He already got a run-out from us once, and everyone was absolutely thrilled. He basically helped set up the 2-1 goal by unsettling the defense,” Forster said. “That’s what led to the goal — the opponents just didn’t know how to respond.”
Kaiser’s commitment shines through in every training session, though he acknowledges certain limitations remain — matching teammates’ speed and enduring full matches present ongoing challenges. His crutches, meanwhile, follow specific rules: if he deliberately blocks the ball with them, play stops as with a handball.
Between amateur league matches, Kaiser competes at the elite level of German amputee football.
“In four or five weeks, the amputee football Bundesliga kicks off again. There are five teams competing. We have five matchdays, and the champion is decided through a playoff in October,” he explained.
While continuing his Wednesday training routine with TSV Brand, Kaiser is simultaneously working to establish an amputee football team in nearby Eckental — because football, after all, is for everyone.
F1 and local organizations hold media briefing ahead of Saudi Grand Prix 2025
- Workshop reviewed the latest preparations, updated organizational measures, and media rules and regulations for 2025 STC Saudi Arabian Grand Prix Formula One race
- Workshop also reviewed history of F1 races, acquainting participants with modus operandi of Grand Prix, points scoring in races etc.
JEDDAH: Formula One (F1) in cooperation with the Ministry of Sports, the Saudi Automobile and Motorcycle Federation, and Saudi Motorsports Company, organized a workshop, Thursday, for local media representatives participating in media coverage of the Formula 1 STC Saudi Arabian Grand Prix 2025.
The workshop reviewed the latest preparations, updated organizational measures, and media rules and regulations for the Saudi Arabian Grand Prix 2025, scheduled to take place from April 18-20.
The workshop, which was held at Media Island, addressed several aspects, including the mechanism of accrediting media outlets and how to conduct media interviews with racers, in addition to explaining laws of communication with participating teams and racers and ways to conduct remote interviews and the top media sources specializing in F1 coverage.
It also reviewed the history of F1 races, acquainting participants with the modus operandi of Grand Prix, explaining the points system, and an account on the teams and racers participating in the current edition and top safety measures followed in organizing the event.
Courtois questions Real Madrid’s ‘individual’ attack after lopsided loss to Arsenal
- “Sometimes you have to be self-critical and have a good look at everything,” the Belgian goalkeeper said
- “Maybe we need to make more team moves and not so many individual ones”
BARCELONA: Thibaut Courtois watched from the other end of the pitch as Real Madrid’s forward took turns crashing against the Arsenal defense.
Courtois had done his part by stopping a penalty. But Kylian Mbappé’s best shot sailed high and wide. Rodrygo’s dribbles got him nowhere, and Vinícius needed a defensive blunder to take Madrid’s sole goal of a 5-1 aggregate defeat in the Champions League quarterfinals.
“Sometimes you have to be self-critical and have a good look at everything,” the Belgian goalkeeper said after the 2-1 home loss to Arsenal midweek.
“Maybe we need to make more team moves and not so many individual ones, because if they double-mark Vini or Mbappé they can break it once, but not three, four or five times,” Courtois said. “We can’t always rely on one of our four attacking players dribbling past three defenders and scoring a great goal, we have to attack and defend better as a team.”
Exiting from the competition they have won five times in the last decade was not what Madrid expected when they added Mbappé to a squad that was coming off a record 15th European Cup and Spanish league title last season.
The France captain has scored a glut of goals in his first season with Madrid but failed to come up big in the biggest games, including two lopsided losses to Barcelona. Jeers were heard for Mbappé when he limped off the field on Wednesday with a hurt right ankle.
The hard truth is that the team have played worse with him on board. Madrid have had injuries in defense and they lost midfielder Toni Kroos to retirement but their attack has failed to click, with Mbappé having to adapt to a central striker role as Vinícius’ production dropped.
Courtois even called into question the range of attacking options for a squad that also counted on Endrick and Brahim Díaz as sparks off the bench. The goalie said Madrid were missing the tall, big striker who could win balls in the box like Joselu Mato, who scored critical goals in last season’s Champions League.
“It was difficult to find openings and we had little success. We were also unlucky with balls into the box. This year we don’t have a Joselu who can win those duels,” Courtois said. “Now we have to analyze what we can do better because we still have the (Spanish) league, the final of the Copa del Rey and the Club World Cup, and we want to get everything right.”
Athletic Bilbao up next in La Liga
There will be little let up for Madrid with a strong Athletic Bilbao arriving on Sunday aiming to dig into the wound left by Arsenal.
Madrid must try to overhaul a four-point deficit to Barcelona in La Liga as they try to salvage the season by defending their domestic title.
Madrid could be facing a seven-point gap with Barcelona by kickoff, if the front-runner beat Celta Vigo at home on Saturday.
Madrid will also face Barcelona in the Copa del Rey final next week, but coach Carlo Ancelotti will likely also need his team to retain the league crown to keep his job. The Italian manager admitted his future was in doubt after his team was outplayed by Arsenal, while also attempting to dampen speculation.
“I’m only thinking about preparing for the next game to stay in the fight for the league title and try to win the Copa del Rey,” he said.
