ANALYSIS: How have teams performed in qualifying so far in 2025?

McLaren have not only been the strongest team in terms of race performance, but they have dictated the pace in qualifying trim as well. F1Technical's senior writer Balazs Szabo analyses teams' qualifying performance over the twelve rounds.

McLaren ended last season in top form which culminated in their first Constructors' Championship title since 1998. The Woking-based outfit then managed to carry over this fine form to the current season, establishing themselves as the dominant form.

The British outfit's dominant form usually shows itself during longer runs in race trim, especially when ambient and track temperatures are high. However, McLaren have been excellent in qualifying trim as well.

The papaya team have been the quickest in terms of one-lap performance, having only been 0.04 per cent adrift of the pole position times.

Ferrari has endured an up-and-down season so far in 2025. Following a strong end to the last season, the Italian team had been expected to fight for the championship titles this year, but it struggled to display strong performance in the opening rounds. To make things even more disappointing, Ferrari's both cars were disqualified at the second race in Shanghai for technical infringement.

However, the Scuderia managed to turn things around as the season progress which saw Charles Leclerc record the team's first podium finish at the Saudi Arabian Grand Prix. The Monegasque then finished second on home turf in Monaco before securing another pair of third-placed finishes at Barcelona and Spielberg.

The better form saw Ferrari move up the order to take second place in the teams' standings. However, the Maranello-based based team has struggled to compete for top places in qualifying trim.

Considering the opening twelve qualifying sessions, Ferrari have been 0.59 per cent adrift of the pole position time which saw them end up only the fourth-quickest team over a single lap.

Mercedes enjoyed a brilliant start to the season. The Brackley-based outfit has scored a total of six podium finishes so far - a victory, one second-placed finish and four third-placed finishes.

However, their performance has slightly faded recently as Andrea Kimi Antonelli retired from both Spielberg and Silverstone, whilst George Russell finished in P5 and P10 in the last two races.

Mercedes struggled for one-lap pace at the start of the current ground-effect technical era, but they have been impressive this year over a single flying lap, having only been 0.47 per cent adrift of the pole position time.

Red Bull started last season in brilliant form, but their performance faded as the season progress. Although the Milton Keynes-based outfit slightly improved their car for the current season, they find themselves fourth in the teams' standings, 288 points behind McLaren.

The Austro-British team's ground-effect cars used to look after the tyres well, but this trend has taken a turn for the current season. The RB21 has struggled to keep up with the race pace shown by McLaren and they have recently struggled to match Mercedes and Ferrari's long-run performance.

However, Red Bull have established themselves as a real force in qualifying team thanks to Max Verstappen's brilliant qualifying laps. Over the opening twelve qualifying sessions, the Milton Keynes-based team has been only 0.37 per cent adrift of the pole position times.

Williams have been the best of the rest in terms of qualifying pace, having 1.03 per cent off the pole position times, but Racing Bulls have also been excellent thanks to rookie driver Isack Hadjar's impressive qualifying laps.

Alpine find themselves at the bottom of the teams' standings, but they have been relatively strong in qualifying, followed by Aston Martin which have achieved some progress recently.

Haas and Sauber have been the slowest teams in terms of one-lap pace, but the Hinwil-based outfit usually lifts in performance in race trim.