F1 Today | Ferrari replaces Hamilton in Abu Dhabi, Stella puts Norris and Piastri on notice

GPblog’s round up of the two best F1 stories of today, 03 December 2025.

Ferrari has confirmed that Lewis Hamilton will not take part in the first free practice session of the 2025 Abu Dhabi Grand Prix.

Under Formula 1 regulations, each full-time driver must give up their car in two FP1 sessions per season to a driver with no more than two Grands Prix of experience.

Hamilton will sit out FP1 for the second time this year, having previously missed the session in Mexico City. His place will be taken by Arthur Leclerc, marking another shared FP1 appearance for the Leclerc brothers at Yas Marina after doing so in 2024.

Charles Leclerc had already fulfilled his own FP1 requirements in Bahrain and Austria. Other changes include Pato O’Ward replacing Oscar Piastri at McLaren and Cian Shields driving Fernando Alonso’s Aston Martin.

McLaren enters the Abu Dhabi finale with Lando Norris, Oscar Piastri and Max Verstappen still in contention for the 2025 Drivers’ Championship.

Verstappen’s win in Qatar reshuffled the standings, placing him ahead of Piastri while Norris maintains a narrow lead. The question of team orders resurfaced as McLaren seeks its first championship double since 1998.

Team principal Andrea Stella said the team would act according to its core principles of fairness and transparency but clarified that decisions will support whichever driver holds the strongest chance of securing the title.

Stella confirmed ongoing discussions with both drivers and stated McLaren would implement team orders if required to ensure a McLaren driver wins the championship. He added that any approach will be aligned between the drivers and the team.

Want to stay up-to-date with what happens in the F1 paddock? Then GPblog’s F1 Paddock Update video is the perfect way to do it. Subscribe to GPblog’s YouTube channel and turn on notifications to never miss the latest episodes.

Leave a Reply Cancel reply