WHY CARLOS SAINZ THINKS OSCAR PIASTRI SHOCKED LANDO NORRIS DURING THE 2025 SEASON
Lando Norris is the 2025 F1 World Champion! Explore how he overcame Oscar Piastri’s challenge and Carlos Sainz’s shock verdict.
Okay, here's a rewrite of that F1 article:
Most of the recent F1 season saw Lando Norris and Oscar Piastri battling it out for their first world title.
In the end, Lando Norris clinched it in Abu Dhabi. His third-place finish at Yas Marina was enough to secure the championship.
Oscar Piastri ended up in third place overall.
The Aussie was leading the championship for 15 out of 24 race weekends, but a string of unfortunate mistakes later in the season messed up Piastri's title hopes.
Still, Piastri's season had many good points. He snagged seven wins, six poles, and 16 podiums in only his third year in F1 and surprised everyone, even his teammate at McLaren.
Carlos Sainz thinks Lando Norris was surprised by how well Oscar Piastri did in 2025.
During Williams' last Team Torque podcast for 2025, Alex Albon and Carlos Sainz chatted about different stuff from Sainz's first season with the Williams team.
Of course, the drivers' championship came up, and Sainz said he was happy for his old teammate's first title, saying, I'm honestly happy for him. I think he must have had a tough year up here.
His year got off to a rough start. I think it's the first time he seemed surprised by how good Oscar was. He had a potential championship-winning ride and needed to make the most of it.
I remember after Canada when he and Oscar bumped, and it was his fault. I remember seeing him, and he didn’t look too happy.
But it shows it's not about how you start; it's about how you finish. And he got over those problems well.
He had a great second part of the season to get the job done because, in the end, the car was good enough, and he made the most of it.
Sainz and Norris are good friends from when they were teammates. Sainz had said before that Norris told him about his biggest problem at McLaren during the tough title fight.
Alex Albon was also impressed with Lando Norris during the 2025 F1 season.
Albon is close to Norris, too, from their time moving up the racing ladder together.
They both started in F1 in 2019, and Albon said he was impressed with Norris' title-winning season this year.
He said, I think it was a really impressive year for him, just in terms of, I think that people don’t understand—mentally, he’s also strong, kind of in how he came back into the mid part of the season.
And then there were a lot of things that didn’t go their way. Vegas, Zandvoort. But still, he had a really strong second half of the season. I think he proved himself to a lot of people.
Sainz said, More than strong, he just kept doing his best. He’s a great Formula 1 driver. Maybe better than people think.
If you look at his last three years, since McLaren got more competitive, he’s been really quick in both qualifying and the race.
It was just the start of the year that made people doubt whether this year’s car suited him or something. It looked tricky at first, but then they got over those problems.
GEORGE RUSSELL ADMITS ANTONELLI IS "EXCEPTIONALLY QUICK" BUT REFUSES TO CONCEDE TITLE
Kimi Antonelli secured his 3rd straight F1 win in Miami, leaving George Russell 43 seconds behind and 20 points down in the title race. (130 chars)
George Russell isn’t flinching. He’s not ready to let go of the story, even as Kimi Antonelli keeps grabbing headlines. Antonelli’s been tearing it up this season – three straight wins, all from pole – and it’s got people talking. Miami was rough for Russell; he finished fourth, over 43 seconds behind Antonelli. That gap isn’t just big; it’s glaring, and it’s putting some real heat on their rivalry at Mercedes.
Russell isn’t pretending things are fine, but he’s not throwing in the towel either. He gets what Antonelli’s doing and gives props where they’re deserved. “He’s a fantastic driver, and he’s been fast since day one,” Russell said. “You don’t win all those championships as a kid if you’re not quick.” He means it, but he’s also drawing a boundary. Russell still believes in himself, and he’s not giving up on the championship.
“I’ve still got confidence in myself, and I haven’t forgotten how to drive,” he said with a little smile. “It’s just a tricky patch, but we’re only four races in; there’s a lot more to come. We’ll sort things out over the next few weeks.”
That “tricky patch” doesn’t just mean some tough luck; it includes a 20-point deficit and a teammate who won’t stop rewriting history. Antonelli’s winning streak has changed the vibe at Mercedes, at least for now.
Russell knows all about momentum and how it doesn’t always stick around. “He’s got momentum right now; he’s flying,” Russell admitted. “But I’ve won championships myself, and I know momentum swings back and forth all year.” He actually doesn’t seem bothered by the points gap. “Honestly, I’m not even thinking about it,” he said.
It’s a calm answer from a guy who’s been here before, leaning on experience while Antonelli rides his hot streak. Russell keeps saying 'big picture, patience, not panic'.
“I just want to get back on top of the podium,” he said. “I had the pace for the first three races, but this weekend I was nowhere close. It could have gone very differently these last few weeks, and this weekend could’ve just been a blip. But some races in Japan and China didn’t go my way. That’s how F1 goes sometimes.”
Still, confidence doesn’t erase a 20-point gap, not if Antonelli keeps cruising. If Antonelli keeps piling up wins, Russell’s going to have to fight more than just the stopwatch. Losing to your teammate over and over starts to mess with your head. Russell began the season as the guy to beat, but the longer this keeps up, the tougher it gets to grab hold of the story again.
He’s holding firm, for now. But F1 doesn’t wait for anyone. What does Russell call “just a tricky run”? Well, if momentum doesn’t swing his way soon, it could become a whole lot more than that.
MAX VERSTAPPEN TAKES FRONT ROW IN MIAMI AS RED BULL UPGRADES DELIVER IMMEDIATE RESULTS
Charles Leclerc admitted surprise at Red Bull's pace after Max Verstappen finished P2, just 0.166s behind Mercedes' Kimi Antonelli.
Charles Leclerc expected Red Bull to bounce back, but he couldn’t help admiring Max Verstappen’s raw speed at the Miami Grand Prix.
Red Bull rolled into Miami with a big upgrade, looking to recover after a rough start to the season. Verstappen, a four-time world champ, landed his Red Bull in second during qualifying. He was only 0.166 seconds behind Andrea Kimi Antonelli’s Mercedes, nearly snatching pole. After qualifying, Verstappen said he finally feels like he’s back in control of his car.
Leclerc was impressed by the turnaround. “Honestly, it’s not shocking to see Kimi up there. Mercedes has been the quickest team this year, and Kimi’s been amazing these last few races,” Leclerc said. “But Max and Red Bull are coming back like this? That’s a bit more surprising. The upgrades clearly worked, and you can’t forget how strong that team really is. You never expect them to just sit back and accept a slow start.”
He added, “We figured they’d come back swinging, but to see them right back on the front row after struggling at the start… that’s something else. It’s pretty remarkable. Still, my job’s the same: beat those guys. That’s where my head’s at right now.”
Leclerc had to settle for third on the grid for Sunday’s race. Ferrari looked strong early in qualifying, but their hopes faded by Q3.
He talked about the changing conditions, but didn’t think that’s what hurt Ferrari. “The wind definitely played a part, but track temperature wasn’t all that different, so I don’t think that’s the reason,” he said. “Maybe the track changed, and we didn’t see it coming, or maybe pushing harder today in qualifying just made our car’s weak spots stand out more.”
Leclerc admitted he hadn’t dug into the numbers yet; he’d just gotten out of the car. “We’ll have to check the details to figure out exactly where we lost time.”
