Lando Norris could dominate the 2025 F1 season at McLaren after Helmut Marko’s ‘second faster’ revelation

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Lando Norris has been patiently waiting for a McLaren car which is capable of competing for a world championship for six years.

After a promising pre-season test in Bahrain, it appears that McLaren may clearly have the fastest car on the grid heading into the Australian Grand Prix.

Norris didn’t show any one lap pace at the Sakhir circuit, but engineers have been worried by the looks of his long runs.

With it being the final year before the 2026 F1 regulations, any advantage is unlikely to be lasting but the Woking-based outfit could dominate this season if they are far ahead of their rivals.

McLaren face a ‘total disaster’ in 2025 if their two drivers are allowed to battle each other for the drivers’ championship.

On the other hand, Mercedes engineers are ‘shocked’ by Norris’ data and fear that the Papaya team could be far ahead of the rest of the pack.

READ MORE: Martin Brundle tells Max Verstappen he has an ‘advantage’ over Lando Norris that McLaren can’t control

Lando Norris could dominate F1 in 2025 if McLaren are ‘a second faster’ as Helmut Marko claims

McLaren ended their campaign in the best way possible in 2024, by winning the Abu Dhabi Grand Prix and ending their 16-year title wait.

They’re carrying the most momentum into the new season, with a feel-good factor and fast car for their two top drivers.

Their rivals should be worried that an aggressive winter of development may have left them behind. Both Ferrari and Red Bull struggled at certain stages during pre-season testing.

Helmut Marko has warned that they may be as much as one second faster in race trim than the rest of the grid in Melbourne.

“They were trying to conceal their potential,” he said. “In the long runs, they had to use a full tank of petrol, so for example, 10kg less is already three tenths. But the long run is a comparison with how a lot of weight they drive [with].

“They were half a second to a second faster and still not included in the top speed measurements. [It] concludes that they did not drive with the full engine power. So if this result is in Australia then it will definitely be one and two.”

READ MORE: McLaren fans are all saying the same thing about Lando Norris after Oscar Piastri contract extension

Can Oscar Piastri challenge Lando Norris for the F1 title in 2025?

Oscar Piastri has been Norris’ teammate for two years now and has learned plenty about his habits, driving style and approach to racing.

He hasn’t been able to match him consistently yet, but 2025 is the year where he will be expected to go head-to-head with the Brit.

Piastri hasn’t spoken to Norris about a title battle but the two are fairly aware that it feels inevitable that they will fight each other at some point this year.

The Aussie needs to develop his understanding of the Pirelli tyres and then he should be able to maintain his pace over a longer period – it’s what has let him down in the past and must be improved.