Five crashes that defined Formula 1’s most brutal season in 2025

The 2025 Formula 1 season will be remembered for its relentless title fight, the rise of young stars, and a reminder that even in the modern era of safety, the margins remain brutally thin.

As Lando Norris, Max Verstappen and Oscar Piastri pushed each other to the limit, the year also delivered a series of high-speed accidents that stopped fans in their tracks.

From incidents that tested drivers physically, teams emotionally and the sport’s safety systems to their limits, here are five of the most dramatic crashes of the 2025 F1 season.

1. Gabriel Bortoleto – São Paulo Grand Prix

Interlagos delivered the emotional low point of the year. Brazilian rookie Gabriel Bortoleto arrived at his home race already shaken after suffering a massive 57G impact on the final lap of the Sprint race.

Less than 24 hours later, disaster struck again. On the opening lap of the main race, Bortoleto was caught out in traffic and slammed heavily into the barriers, destroying his car for the second time in one weekend.

Watching a local hero’s debut unravel so violently, twice, was a sobering reminder of the pressures young drivers face under the brightest spotlight.

2. Yuki Tsunoda – Emilia-Romagna Grand Prix

If one crash defined fear rather than damage, it was Yuki Tsunoda’s Imola qualifying accident. Losing control at Turn 6, Tsunoda hit the gravel at high speed, launching his Red Bull into a terrifying sequence of barrel rolls.

The car came to rest against the tyre barrier, heavily damaged, but the sight that mattered most followed moments later as Tsunoda climbed out unassisted.

It was the scariest-looking crash of the season, and a powerful endorsement of modern F1 safety standards.

3. Lando Norris – Saudi Arabian Grand Prix

Lando Norris’s championship campaign nearly unravelled before it truly began. During a flat-out Q3 session in Jeddah, Norris lost the rear of his McLaren at around 250km/h exiting Turn 4 and slammed into the concrete barriers.

The crash forced him to start tenth and posed a serious mental test early in a season that would ultimately end in glory.

How Norris responded that weekend would later be viewed as a defining moment in his title-winning resilience.

4. Norris and Piastri – Canadian Grand Prix

The flashpoint that exposed McLaren’s internal tension came in Montreal. Fighting for fourth place in the closing laps, Norris and Oscar Piastri made contact in an incident that damaged both cars and ignited controversy.

Team principal Andrea Stella’s post-race verdict was blunt, calling the clash unacceptable. It proved to be the moment McLaren realised that freedom on track came with consequences, prompting firmer team orders as the title battle intensified.

5. Lewis Hamilton and George Russell – Qatar Grand Prix

History repeated itself in Lusail. For the second time in three years, Mercedes teammates collided at the start of the Qatar Grand Prix.

Attempting a bold move around the outside of Russell and Verstappen at Turn 1, Hamilton made contact with Russell’s front wing. Hamilton was pitched into the gravel and eliminated on the spot, while Russell was left to salvage what he could from the race.

It was a costly reminder that even experienced teammates can misjudge the tightest of margins.