Max Verstappen gave his Formula 1 title defense a big boost with victory at the Emilia-Romagna Grand Prix after a daring overtake on standings leader Oscar Piastri at the start.

The four-time world champion marked Red Bull’s 400th grand prix start with a superb victory in Italy, as McLaren had to settle for the remaining podium spots

Max Verstappen returned to the top step with a dominant display to win the 2025 Emilia Romagna Grand Prix. The Dutchman pulled off one of the moves of his career in lap 1 to get past pole-sitter Oscar Piastri and never looked like losing it from there.

Max Verstappen held off Lando Norris and Oscar Piastri to win his fourth consecutive Emilia Romagna Grand Prix

McLaren have been in control so far this season. Oscar Piastri leads the drivers’ standings with 131 points, and teammate Lando Norris isn’t far behind with 115. The 1-2 lead in the drivers championship keeps McLaren well ahead in the constructors’ championship too--they’re on 246 points, with Mercedes in second on 141 points.

The Drivers’ Championship has closed up following the Emilia Romagna Grand Prix as title leader Oscar Piastri could do no better than third. An uncompromising move at Turn 1 delivered Max Verstappen his second win of the F1 2025 season while a late pass saw Lando Norris claimed second place over his McLaren teammate.

Discover our bold 2025 Emilia-Romagna Grand Prix podium predictions! Piastri, Norris, or Antonelli? Top F1 picks for Imola’s big race.

Formula One is in Europe for the first time this year, as Imola hosts Round 7 of the 2025 season — follow our live coverage of today’s track action