It seems incredible that, with only 6 races left to go in the 2025 Formula One World Drivers’ Championship, McLaren are still undecided on who their number one driver is. And yet, that is the reality of the situation that the team faces as the next race at COTA approaches.
Having secured the Constructors’ Championship in the last race at Singapore, it would be expected that McLaren would be preparing to deliver the WDC back to Woking. That outcome looks increasingly likely with both of their drivers in P1 and P2 in the current standings. But the question on everyone’s lips is, who will win? Seemingly, that is the same question being echoed around the McLaren garage currently with no clear signal that either driver is being considered the priority.
This may cause concern for those of a Papaya persuasion. A lack of direct intent has been the downfall of many teams and driver pairings in the past. Clear understanding on how a race weekend is going to shape out is paramount to a team’s success. McLaren should know as they faced a similar struggle in 2007 when Hamilton and Alonso tussled on track resulting in both drivers missing out on the Championship by 1 point each.
Despite the uncertainty over who the preferred driver may be, many fans have raised suspicions towards Zak Brown about supposed favouritism towards Lando Norris. Question marks have resurfaced following the collision between the pair of drivers in the latest race at Singapore where Norris collided with Piastri, sending the Championship leader within inches of the wall. After complaining to his race engineer, Piastri was told Norris would not need to cede the position and he eventually finished outside the podium places in P4. The decision for Norris to complete the race unpunished benefitted the Brit and directly impacted Piastri’s title hopes.
This follows a string of decisions favouring Norris including in Monza where he suffered a slow pit stop and Piastri subsequently passed. However, Piastri this time was ordered to return the position despite the Australian making the claim on the team radio that a slow pit stop is “part of racing”.
Mario Andretti, 1978 Formula One World Champion, has accused McLaren of favouritism towards the British driver. When speaking to La Gazzetta dello Sport, the former racer said, “it seems to me that McLaren, for some reason – I don’t know why – they favour Lando Norris.”
A fight on track for positions is likely to harm both McLaren driver’s title hopes whilst also opening the door for other competitors. Max Verstappen has won 2 out of the previous 3 races, having only won 2 in the previous 15 before then. His red-hot form could spell trouble for the McLaren duo. A slip up between the pair could give Verstappen the opportunity he has been looking for to claim his fifth consecutive World Championship. When speaking to La Gazzetta dello Sport, former World Champion Jacques Villeneuve named Verstappen as the favourite for the 2025 WDC. He said, “it will be his best World Championship yet. Because the two McLarens are suffering too much under pressure.” The Dutchman needs no invitation as he has already closed the gap from 104 points after the Dutch Grand Prix to 63 points with 6 races to go.
Both Lando Norris and Oscar Piastri are driving brilliantly this season and so McLaren have a task on their hands when it comes to deciding who they think should be favoured for the title. But with Verstappen etching ever closer to the Papaya pair, Zak Brown may need to make that decision sooner rather than later.
The next race weekend will be hosted in Austin, Texas, as Formula One begins its tour of North and South America.
