‘I don’t have any major concerns:’ Pressure builds on Oscar Piastri, McLaren as F1 title fight comes down to the wire

Photo Credit: REUTERS

With five Grand Prix and two Sprint Races left in the 2025 Formula 1 season, pressure is mounting on McLaren’s Oscar Piastri, with his lead over teammate Lando Norris and Red Bull’s Max Verstappen dwindling.

After a disappointing weekend at the United States Grand Prix in Austin, Texas, Piastri’s lead over Norris in the World Drivers’ Championship is just 14 points. Four-time World Champion Verstappen is 40 points behind the Australian. With wins in Saturday’s Sprint Race and Sunday’s Grand Prix, Verstappen’s perfect weekend in Austin cut the deficit by 23 points.

Norris finished behind Verstappen on Sunday after a long, grueling battle with Ferrari’s Charles Leclerc. The Britton gained eight points on his teammate, who finished in fifth. Both McLarens crashed out on the opening lap of the Sprint Race, allowing Verstappen the chance to crawl back into World Drivers’ Championship contention.

It hasn’t been easy for Piastri since returning from the summer break. The Aussie finished first or second in the final four races before the three-week break, including winning the Belgian Grand Prix at the end of July. After winning the Dutch Grand Prix, the first race following the summer break, Piastri’s form has steadily declined. The Championship leader has stood on the podium once in the last four races, including registering a DNF (Did Not Finish) in the Azerbaijan Grand Prix. Meanwhile, Verstappen has won three of those four races, quickly closing the gap to Norris and Piastri.

“This weekend has obviously been tough,” said Oscar Piastri. “The gap has come down a little bit in the last few weekends.

“I’d still rather be where I am than the other two. Definitely Max and Red Bull have found a lot of pace since the summer break as well. We saw flashes of it at the start of the year, but it’s been consistent since then.”

With seven more chances to obtain points, five races and two sprints, Piastri is still in a favorable position. The 24-year-old has won seven Grand Prix this season, the most by any driver on the grid, with Norris and Verstappen both winning five. Mercedes’ George Russell is the only other unique Grand Prix winner this season, taking victory in Canada and Singapore.

Piastri has 346 points, with Norris behind on 332 points and Verstappen looming in the rearview mirror with 306 points. Piastri’s biggest advantage over the surging Verstappen comes in the fight for the Constructors’ Championship. McLaren has sealed F1’s team championship, giving Piastri one less thing to worry about on track. For Verstappen and Red Bull, they are fighting Ferrari and Mercedes for second place, with the teams separated by 10 points. Pressure will be on the Dutch driver as he has 301 of his team’s 331 points.

However, Norris will share the same advantage with Piastri, with his only task being to hunt his teammate down as they both fight for their first World Drivers’ Championship.

Piastri has been in this situation before. The former Formula 3 and Formula 2 World Champion is confident heading into the final stretch of racing.

“I’ve been in fights that were as close or at this point even closer than they are now,” Piastri said. “So I’ve got the evidence for myself that things can still turn out well and I still fully believe that I can win the championship.”

During the 2020 F3 season, Piastri entered the final race in a three-way battle for the championship. He was tied with his teammate, Logan Sargeant, on 160 points. Rival Theo Pourchaire was two points behind the pair. A crash eliminated Sargeant from contention, and Pourchaire couldn’t finish far enough ahead of Piastri to overtake him in the standings, giving Piastri his maiden championship.

His F2 title in 2021 was much less stressful, winning the Drivers’ Championship by 60.5 points. Piastri became the third driver to win the F3 and F2 championships in back-to-back seasons.

While the young driver may lack F1 title fight experience, he is confident that his previous championship wins in F3 and F2, along with his current lead over Norris and Verstappen, put him in a great position to become a first-time World Drivers’ Champion.

“You know, there’s still a long way to go in the championship,” Piastri said. “It is still, for Max, anyway; he’s obviously chased it down pretty quick, but it’s not exactly a small gap with five rounds to go.

“Ultimately, if we can find our way again, find our pace, certainly for me, find our pace again, then I don’t have any concerns.”