Oscar Piastri admits Lando Norris title fight now has an ‘added complication’ he’s never experienced

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Oscar Piastri has admitted that fighting against McLaren teammate Lando Norris for the 2025 Formula 1 drivers’ championship has added a ‘complication’ to his approach to the title.

The Azerbaijan Grand Prix sees Oscar Piastri return to one of his most prolific circuits on the calendar.

Piastri was heavily praised for his overtake on Charles Leclerc during last year’s race in Baku that earned him his second Formula 1 victory.

Lando Norris finished more than half a minute behind the Australian, and he’ll know he can’t let that happen again on Sunday.

Piastri currently has a 31-point lead over Norris in the drivers’ championship.

Much has been said about McLaren’s decision to tell Piastri to give second place back to Norris after a slow pit stop at the Italian Grand Prix.

It resulted in a six-point swing in the championship that could be pivotal by the time Formula 1 reaches Abu Dhabi in December.

Piastri has now spoken about his approach to fighting Norris this season, and the pressure doesn’t appear to be affecting him yet.

However, he has noted an ‘added complication’ this season that he didn’t experience during his Formula 3 and Formula 2 championship victories.

READ MORE: McLaren driver Oscar Piastri’s life outside F1 from height to girlfriend

Oscar Piastri says fighting teammate Lando Norris for 2025 F1 title has created an ‘added complication’

Piastri was speaking in an interview with Autosport and was asked what was different to chasing the drivers’ championship this year compared to his previous title challenges.

He explained: “In a lot of ways, it feels pretty similar to championships I’ve raced for in the past.

“I think for me, the big difference is this is the first time I’ve really raced a teammate so hard for a championship.

“[At lower levels] there’s no pit stops, there’s no strategy, it’s purely just go out and try to beat each other and finish ahead of each other.

“In F1, you’ve got the added complication of strategy. You’ve got a bunch of different things that can influence results.

“That’s been quite a different mentality in some ways, but ultimately, the position I’m in feels very familiar trying to secure a championship.”

Piastri was also asked how he plans to approach the final races of the season and explained: “Taking it race by race: it sounds boring, and kind of is boring in some ways, but it is very true.

“You can’t worry about what’s going to happen in Abu Dhabi and take your focus off what you’re doing in the weekend, especially at the top of F1.

“You’ve got to be at the top of your game every single time, and any focus you kind of take away from that means you’re not at the top of your game.”

READ MORE: McLaren driver Lando Norris’ life outside F1 from parents to celebration

David Coulthard tells McLaren a ‘bust-up’ is coming between Oscar Piastri and Lando Norris

One of the most impressive characteristics of Norris and Piastri’s rivalry this season is how courteous it’s been on and off the track.

Toto Wolff thinks McLaren’s team orders are very different to his Mercedes outfit when Lewis Hamilton and Nico Rosberg were fighting in 2016.

During that season, it got very difficult to manage for Wolff, who had to swap mechanics between the garages to try and stop it from becoming too tribal at Mercedes.

The fact that Piastri gave up points to Norris at Monza shows how well Andrea Stella is managing both of his drivers.

However, David Coulthard has warned of a bust-up between McLaren’s drivers in the future.

They already hit each other in Canada, and Piastri came very close to taking Norris out in Austria and Hungary as he attempted to increase his lead in the championship.