David Croft shares what ‘struck’ him speaking to Oscar Piastri amid Lando Norris F1 title fight

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With the summer break now out of the way and the F1 season back in full swing, David Croft has shared what ‘struck’ him about McLaren’s Oscar Piastri upon his return to the F1 paddock.

The Australian has been in fine form this season, winning six races so far as he holds a slender nine-point lead over his McLaren teammate, Lando Norris, in the drivers’ championship.

His six wins in a single calendar year mark the most for an Australian driver in the history of the sport.

With his hold over the championship lead being a fragile one, Piastri has it all to do to ensure that he becomes an F1 world champion.

Piastri told McLaren that he wants to compete for a title every year, but there’s no guarantee that the papaya team will be a contender next season, so he has to make the most of his current opportunity.

With Norris just over one race win from taking the lead, Jolyon Palmer thinks Piastri will ‘rue’ the fact that he doesn’t have more of a hold over the championship at this current point.

David Croft is surprised at how ‘relaxed’ Oscar Piastri and Lando Norris are amid their 2025 F1 title fight

Speaking on Sky Sports F1’s coverage of FP2 at the Dutch Grand Prix, commentator David Croft revealed what surprised him most about Norris and Piastri during Thursday afternoon’s press conferences in Zandvoort.

“One thing that struck me yesterday when I was chatting to Oscar Piastri and watching Lando Norris in the press conference was how relaxed both championship contenders were coming back to the track after their summer break,” Croft stated.

“You know me, I’d have been a nervous wreck throughout the entire few weeks because you’re just constantly going over in your mind.

“What can and can’t happen between now and the end of the season, but they were both looking, really relaxed, both had a really good break and time away.

“Lando played some golf with some friends of his in Spain, Oscar went off to Greece and then spent some time back at home in Monaco. But they’ve chilled out and come back really ready for action, and both have a super frame of mind for the title fight to come.”

Oscar Piastri did a TPC test at Zandvoort during the first half of the season to improve at one of Lando Norris’s favourable tracks

In a bid to get one over on his teammate and pad his skills ahead of the ensuing title fight, Piastri did a TPC (Testing of Previous Cars) test with McLaren at Zandvoort earlier in the season.

The Australian did a number of tests at different tracks that he has struggled with in the past throughout the current campaign. Barcelona was also one of those tracks, and Piastri managed to translate what he had learnt in the test by taking pole position and a Grand Prix victory at the circuit in June.

It was a circuit that McLaren were surprised by Piastri’s lack of pace at, with the Australian finishing in seventh place whilst his teammate stood on the podium in second after starting from pole position.

Piastri identifies the tests as ‘difference-makers’ in his bid to become a Formula 1 world champion by the time the chequered flag falls in Abu Dhabi at the final race of the season.