F1 paddock insiders have now taken ‘remarkable’ stance on Lando Norris’ 2025 title chances

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Lando Norris chipped three points from Oscar Piastri’s championship lead at the Italian Grand Prix last weekend. It’s now down to 31 ahead of the final eight rounds.

Norris out-raced Piastri for the fourth time in the last six Grands Prix, but unfortunately, he made limited inroads. That’s because Max Verstappen’s Red Bull came alive at Monza and picked up the maximum 25 points.

The British driver finds himself with virtually no margin for error after a car failure forced him to retire from the Dutch GP. That could be the decisive moment of the title fight.

McLaren are committed to ensuring the battle between the two is as fair as possible. Piastri had to move over for Norris after taking second due to a slow pit stop, but there’s little they can do to remedy the damage caused by the Zandvoort failure.

F1 paddock insiders have already ‘written off’ Lando Norris in 2025 title fight

Speaking on ESPN’s Unlapped podcast, journalist Nate Saunders said there was a ‘remarkable’ consensus in the F1 paddock. Many have already ‘written Norris off’.

With eight Grands Prix and three Sprints remaining, there are still 224 points available. And even if Piastri, virtually faultless thus far, doesn’t make any mistakes, the events in the Netherlands show that the McLaren car isn’t bulletproof.

Norris needs to gain less than four points per weekend to overhaul Piastri’s lead. It seems that F1 insiders have little confidence in his ability to do so, but Saunders suggests that could somehow help him.

“It’s quite remarkable actually,” he said. “Most people in the paddock have written Norris off a little bit. Maybe he’s thriving a bit more in that environment, I don’t know.”

This was echoed by the BBC’s Andrew Benson on a recent episode of the ‘Chequered Flag’ podcast. Piastri has not only finished every Grand Prix – he’s scored a podium in 14 out of 16 and only once dropped lower than fourth.

“Everyone has the feeling, or many, many people in Formula 1, have the feeling that it’s going to be Piastri’s year eventually, one way or another,” said Benson.

McLaren employee addresses Oscar Piastri preferential treatment accusation

Off the record, McLaren doubt Piastri would have given up a win at Monza, had the same pit-stop situation played out. Both drivers have complied with every team order, but Andrea Stella can surely expect more resistance in the remaining rounds.

Of course, McLaren will hope they don’t have to get involved. The Monza debacle appears unique, though it has created an awkward precedent if there are further pit-stop issues.

Some fans on social media have alleged that Piastri is receiving preferential treatment from the mechanics. These unfounded accusations regularly surface during intense intra-team battles.

But as a McLaren mechanic rightly pointed out, Piastri’s pit stop times are virtually the same as Norris’, on average, over the course of the season. In an ideal scenario, the title fight will no longer be influenced by external factors, but this simply isn’t realistic in racing.