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TITLE WAIT CONTINUES: ZAK BROWN BACKS OSCAR PIASTRI FOR 2026 AFTER 410-POINT FINISH
Oscar Piastri's F1 title bid crumbled after leading 71% of the season, ultimately finishing 3rd and 13 points behind Lando Norris due to mid-season errors and team orders.
In 2025, Oscar Piastri appeared set to win the F1 drivers’ championship, leading for 71% of the season. Yet, he ended up in third place, with his McLaren teammate, Lando Norris, grabbing the title.
Max Verstappen of Red Bull squeezed between the McLaren drivers in the standings. Norris edged out Verstappen by just two points, preventing the Dutchman from securing a fifth straight title. Piastri ended the year 13 points behind his teammate, with 423, 421, and 410 points, respectively.
Norris started the season strong, winning the Australian Grand Prix and ending Verstappen's 1,029-day reign at the top. Still, Piastri took over the lead after winning in Saudi Arabia, the fifth race of the 24-race season.
Piastri held the lead for 189 days until Norris won in Mexico City (race 20) and regained it for the final 42 days. Norris's title win made him the 11th British champion in F1 history, while Australia's wait for a champion since 1980 continues.
Zak Brown, McLaren CEO, believes Piastri can contend for the 2026 title after his near-miss in 2025.
Brown thinks Piastri could have won the 2025 title, but some mid-season difficulties threw him off course. Brown still thinks Piastri should be happy with his results.
Brown feels that if Piastri can shore up a few areas, he can compete for the title in 2026. The 2026 regulations could shake up the grid, but Brown is confident that Piastri will eventually win a title.
Brown mentioned on Radio X that Oscar did great in the off-season. He thinks the two drivers pushed each other to improve, which also helped the team.
He noted that leading early in the championship is different from chasing, especially in a long season. Piastri faced some mid-season challenges but bounced back strongly.
Brown is looking forward to next year because he believes Piastri will return to Australia motivated. He sees Piastri as tough and focused, needing only a few improvements. He suggests keeping an eye on Piastri next year.
Brown added that Piastri is disappointed but shouldn't be with the overall season. He should be proud of his seven wins. He pointed out that it was only Piastri's third full season, compared to Lando's seventh, adding that Piastri is going to be a world champion, maybe even next year.
Piastri’s title hopes took a hit after McLaren's team orders at Monza.
Piastri wrapped up the 2025 season with seven of his nine career wins, 16 of his 26 podiums, and all six of his pole positions. Only Verstappen (8) had more wins, and he and Norris had more poles (8 and 7) during the season.
Norris had the most podiums in 2025 with 18, ahead of Piastri (16) and Verstappen (15). Piastri lost ground between Baku (race 17) and Las Vegas (race 22), a slide that began with the race in Italy at Monza (race 16).
McLaren instructed Piastri to give second place back to Norris during the Italian Grand Prix. Piastri had overtaken Norris, who was told he would stay ahead if he let Piastri pit first. However, Norris had a slower pit stop. Piastri initially disagreed but complied.
Piastri then crashed in the Azerbaijan Grand Prix after crashing in qualifying and jumping the race start. Piastri was also unhappy with Norris after they made contact during the Singapore Grand Prix while fighting for third place.
McLaren blamed Piastri for the crash with Norris during the COTA Sprint, saying he tried an aggressive move. He also struggled in Mexico City, Sao Paulo, and Las Vegas due to low grip before recovering in Qatar.
To top it off, both McLaren drivers were disqualified in Las Vegas after their cars were found to have excessive wear on the underfloor. A bad call from McLaren in Qatar also cost Piastri a possible win.
ANDREA STELLA : BEATING MAX VERSTAPPEN MAKES LANDO NORRIS’ F1 TITLE WIN MORE SPECIAL
McLaren Team Principal Andrea Stella believes Lando Norris' 2025 F1 title win is elevated because he defeated Max Verstappen, calling it a "prestigious" achievement.
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McLaren's Andrea Stella believes that beating Max Verstappen and Red Bull made Lando Norris’ 2025 Formula 1 championship win even more special.
Even though Verstappen won the race in Abu Dhabi, it wasn't enough to keep his championship title. Norris finished in third place, which was just enough to win his first Drivers’ title.
For most of the season, it looked like a battle between the McLaren drivers. Norris and Oscar Piastri had won 12 races between them in the first 15 races.
However, Red Bull had a big turnaround, and Verstappen, who was 104 points behind Piastri with nine races to go, got back into the fight.
But while Verstappen won the last three races, Norris and McLaren did just enough to win the title by only two points.
Stella, who has been in the sport since 2000, said that Norris won at a time when the competition is tougher than ever.
“Thinking back, the season really reminded me of 2003, which also came down to the last race,” Stella told the media. “There were some challenges near the end, and the whole season was close and tense. Michael Schumacher ended up winning that year.
“Then we had 2007, which again went to the last race with three drivers in contention.
“I kept thinking about these past situations during the entire weekend.
“The drivers in Formula 1 today are incredibly talented, which makes Lando’s success this season even more impressive.
“Drivers now have telemetry data from the time they start racing go-karts, and they receive so much support. They’re just naturally fast.
“We sometimes see that established drivers struggle to keep up with the younger generation.”
Norris Ends Verstappen’s Time as World Champion
Stella stated that beating Verstappen and stopping him from equaling Schumacher’s record of five titles in a row makes Norris’ win even greater.
“It’s a really big accomplishment,” he said.
“Beating Max Verstappen, a four-time World Champion, in a team that knows what it's doing, is a real achievement.
“It’s a really impressive, high-quality, and prestigious win.
“And it’s amazing that Oscar was also so close to winning. I think that shows how much of a team effort this was.”
FRED VASSEUR ENCOURAGES HAMILTON-LECLERC CRITICISM DESPITE ELKANN'S 'TALK LESS' DEMAND
Ferrari boss Fred Vasseur is unfazed by public criticism from Charles Leclerc and Lewis Hamilton, calling their complaints a "positive dynamic" for improvement.
Ferrari's F1 boss, Fred Vasseur, isn't bothered by Charles Leclerc and Lewis Hamilton publicly criticizing the team, even though it annoyed John Elkann.
The 2025 season was a letdown for Ferrari. They didn't win any races and dropped to fourth in the championship, losing the 2024 title to McLaren on the last day.
Leclerc and Hamilton, who finished fifth and sixth in the driver standings, often showed their frustration in interviews. At the Brazilian Grand Prix, Hamilton said it was a nightmare after a double DNF.
Ferrari chairman Elkann criticized this negativity, saying the drivers need to focus on driving and talk less, which sparked a lot of debate.
But Vasseur doesn't care much about what the drivers say publicly. What matters to him are the conversations behind the scenes.
"I don't care about the reaction on TV," Vasseur said after Ferrari finished fourth and eighth at the Abu Dhabi Grand Prix.
What's most important is having someone come back to us, pushing the team to improve and work together to get better results.
They're emotional sometimes on the radio, and it depends on the person. You all know Charles. He's always a bit critical of himself, the team, and everyone, but it's always in a positive way.
I've known Charles for 10 or 16 years, and he's always been like this. He's always complaining about everything. But it's a positive thing that pushes us to do a better job.
It doesn't matter if we're P4, P3, or P1. Our DNA is to do a better job. I'm okay with this, and the most important thing is that they keep the same approach to the debriefing: to get a better car, a better team, and a better everything. That's how we'll improve.
Vasseur even said he encourages his drivers to criticize the team because that's how Ferrari will get back to the top when the new rules come in next year.
"I'd be upset if the drivers told me we were doing a good job," he added. When a driver sums up the season, it's about finding where we can improve. I don't want drivers telling me, 'We're doing a good job on this, this, and this.'
Their DNA and my DNA is to push the team to do a better job. So, Charles and Lewis need to come to us and push the team to the limit in every area. We can improve everywhere.
Last year, we were fighting until the last corner, and the reaction was the same. Charles said, ‘Okay guys, we have to improve in every area: the simulator, the setup, and the aero.’
This is their job and our sport. I'm not shocked when they come to me and say, 'Fred, we have to improve on this, this, this, this, and this,' because that's what we're asking them to do.
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