With the European leg of the F1 season ready to kick off, fans are also getting ready for the latest installment of the official Formula 1 video game. Developed by Codemasters and published by EA Sports, F1 25 releases on all platforms on the 30th of May.
Naturally, with the latest F1 game just weeks away from release, the driver ratings have been revealed. All the drivers were joined in the Miami paddock to guess their 2025 driver ratings given by EA Sports.
Williams’ Carlos Sainz, who drove a stellar 2024 season for Ferrari and got them close to winning the Constructors’ title last year, was given a solid driver rating of 90. After his scores were revealed, he was asked if he wanted to take a cheeky sneak peek at other drivers’ ratings.
The Madrid-born driver picked out his former teammate, Charles Leclerc, and 2025 Ferrari driver Lewis Hamilton. The #16 driver was rated 91 overall, but Sainz was happy when he saw the seven-time world champion’s score. EA Sports have rated Hamilton at an overall of 89.
This prompted Sainz to jokingly gloat, “I’m higher rated than Lewis. I’m higher rated than the GOAT.” Sainz’s reaction prompted his teammate, Alex Albon, to chime in with a hilarious one-liner.
“You’ve been replaced, and you’re rated higher,” he said.
| Sainz reacts to his F1 25 rating:
“I’m higher rated than Lewis. I’m higher rated than the GOAT.”
Albon: “You’ve been replaced, and you’re rated higher!” pic.twitter.com/J53bdiDqRM
— formularacers (@formularacers_) May 8, 2025
After three strong seasons with the Maranello-based team, where Sainz matched his highly-rated teammate for pace consistently, the #55 driver was confident that he would be offered a contract extension by Ferrari for 2025 and beyond.
But in a surprising turn of events, Fred Vasseur decided to axe him from the team to welcome Hamilton instead. This left Sainz distraught, but he has now accepted his fate and is fully motivated to help Williams get back to the top.
As for Driver ratings, they are bifurcated into four separate scores that are averaged into a final rating. These are Experience (based on the number of race starts a driver has made), Race Pace (performances in Grands Prix in the previous season), Awareness (based on the number of incidents and penalties received in the last season) and Pace (based on the qualifying results from the last season).
Sainz scored 87, 96, 88, and 88, respectively, on the above parameters. His teammate, Albon, was rated 83 by EA Sports, a score that the British-Thai driver wasn’t too happy about.
“We need to have a word with EA,” he said. That said, on the real racing track, the duo of Sainz and Albon have developed into a force to reckon with.
In the last season of the ground effects regulations, the duo have so far helped the team move to P5 in the Constructors’ standings, which would be a welcome relief after a disappointing P9 finish last year. Going into the 2026 regulations reset, this driver pairing, along with the development Williams have been making, could see them fight at the sharp end of the field.
