NOTE: Full version of this Notebook is at Kaggle.

This notebook visualizes race traces for every F1 Grand Prix in 2025, using historical data from the Formula 1 Race Data dataset (provided by ergast.com and updated on Kaggle after every race), along with race event information from Wikipedia.

Race traces are a great way to capture the dynamics of a Grand Prix. They show the gaps between cars, how the field spreads out over time, and the relative pace of each car as the race progresses. These traces are based on cumulative lap times, adjusted using the median lap time at each point in the race. The horizontal zero line serves as a reference for a virtual car running at the field’s median average lap time—cars above this line are faster, while those below are slower.

Here are some key features of the race traces:

• The line colors for each driver are based on their team colors.
• The fastest lap is marked with a ★.
• Laps where a car went via the pit lane are marked with a ●.
• Laps affected by the safety car are highlighted in yellow, indicating why the gaps between cars have reduced.
• Virtual safety cars, introduced in 2015, are highlighted in orange, as they cause the lines to spread out temporarily since leaders have completed more of the first affected lap at racing speeds.
• Overtakes are visible where the lines cross, often due to pit-stops.
• Truncated lines indicate retirement from the race.

The shadow at the bottom of the trace indicates which cars have been lapped by the lead car. This helps to reveal some effects, such as leaders making pit-stops to avoid slower traffic ahead. Backmarkers must allow leading cars through, and the edge of the shadow shows why their lines suddenly dip. Leaders may also ease off to let a lapped car through at the end of a race.

It's worth noting that good safety car data is hard to find, and the data scraped from Wikipedia may contain some mistakes. Therefore, the virtual safety car highlights in the traces are the author's estimates using lap-time data.

Overall, these race traces offer a comprehensive and informative way to understand the progress of each F1 race in 2025.

Tip: to see better resolution, <Right click> → Open Image in New Tab.

Revisions¶

All F1 Race Traces¶

There is a notebook for every year that has lap-time data:

1996, 1997, 1998, 1999, 2000, 2001, 2002, 2003, 2004, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2008, 2009, 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014, 2015, 2016, 2017, 2018, 2019, 2020, 2021, 2022, 2023, 2024, 2025.

2025 Formula One World Championship¶

For background see Wikipedia; here's an excerpt:

The 2025 FIA Formula One World Championship is a motor racing championship for Formula One cars and the 76th running of the Formula One World Championship. It is recognised by the Fédération Internationale de l'Automobile (FIA), the governing body of international motorsport, as the highest class of competition for open-wheel racing cars. The championship is contested over twenty-four Grands Prix held around the world. It began in March and will end in December.

Drivers and teams compete for the titles of World Drivers' Champion and World Constructors' Champion, respectively. Max Verstappen, driving for Red Bull Racing-Honda RBPT, is the reigning Drivers' Champion, while McLaren-Mercedes are the reigning Constructors' Champions.

The 2025 season is the last year to utilise the power unit configuration introduced in 2014. A revised configuration without the Motor Generator Unit-Heat (MGU-H), but with a higher power output from the Motor Generator Unit-Kinetic (MGU-K), will be introduced for 2026. 2025 also marks the final year of the ground-effect generation of cars introduced in 2022, and the last year of the drag reduction system (DRS) introduced as an overtaking aid in 2011 as cars with active aerodynamics and moveable wings are being introduced in 2026.

2025 is the final season for Renault as an active engine supplier for its team Alpine, as the manufacturer plans to discontinue engine production post-2025.

Laps Per Position¶

Top F1 Drivers 2025¶

F1 Teams 2025¶