Inside F1's 2025 live launch: Red Bull SILENCED after horrendous Christian Horner reaction

Well that was certainly a different way to officially kick off the new Formula 1 season and GPFans is here to give you the insider review after the first F1 Live launch.

Earlier this week, all 10 teams, 20 drivers, team principals and thousands of eager fans descended on London's O2 arena to catch a glimpse of the new liveries ahead of the 2025 season (or as most people were referring to it as, Lewis Hamilton's public debut in Ferrari red).

F175 Live was a first-of-its-kind event to celebrate the 75th anniversary of the highly competitive championship and it gave teams a chance to bring the show to the fans with the entire event live-streamed on YouTube.

Many fans, myself included, were pleasantly surprised at the event, with comedian Jack Whitehall a suitable fit for the role of the evening's host, with F1 allowing him to poke fun at the stars of the sport.

The atmosphere inside the arena was electric and aside from one or two cringe moments - we'll get to those soon enough - the overall spectacle was the perfect way to get casual fans ramped up for the upcoming campaign.

After the tickets sold like gold dust, those who didn't manage to grab one were able to enjoy F175 Live from the comfort of their own home and the viewing figures speak for themselves after over four million tuned in, smashing F1’s previous live event record.

The highly anticipated 2025 Ferrari Formula 1 merch is available to buy right now.

2025 launches: Ferrari stole the show whilst Red Bull shied away

The musical lineup for the night left a lot to be desired with eagle-eyed fans of the sport flocking to social media to question why Machine Gun Kelly had been invited back to an F1 event after his odd grid walk interview with broadcasting legend Martin Brundle at the 2023 Brazilian GP.

Another outfit whose reveal naturally also exuded pure class was Ferrari, with the stadium erupting any time seven-time champion Hamilton appeared on the screen or stage.

For the fans to be able to witness Hamilton's history being made was the main success of the night, and the champion truly did appear reborn, or, in his own words, "invigorated... so full of life."

Sadly, not all teams hit the mark and whether it may have been to avoid controversy by simply not saying anything at all, Red Bull's reveal in particular fell rather flat.

The FIA hadn't sent any representatives, whereas Horner and Verstappen had to endure the awkward environment of facing the negative crowd reaction live and in person.

As the reigning champion, the Dutchman was evenly met with jeers and cheers, whereas his Red Bull principal Horner was practically booed off stage as he attempted to stumble through his introductory speech before Verstappen and new team-mate Lawson appeared on stage with a bizarre flashmob-style group dancing alongside the drivers and their new livery.

Every other team allowed their drivers to speak or be interviewed on stage after the initial reveal, but who can blame Red Bull for perhaps preferring to let their performance on track do the talking in less than a month at the first grand prix of the year.

Written by

Kerry Violet - F1 News Editor

Having graduated from the University of Sheffield with a 2:1 in Journalism in 2022, Kerry continued her pursuit of finding a full-time position in motorsport through work with the F1 Arcade in London, where she got to meet true fans of the sport and make a live grand prix watch party memorable for them. It was here that she confirmed her dream of combining her background in journalism and love of motorsport, going on to volunteer with the female-led platform Empoword Journalism. Having completed stints as a screen editor and sports editor, Kerry landed her first F1-specific editorial role with GPFans and has thoroughly enjoyed continuing to work closely with the sport ever since. The access GPFans offers Kerry has allowed her to interview big names such as Naomi Schiff and David Coulthard and given her experiences she could only have dreamt of as a young F1 fan.

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