Lando Norris vs Oscar Piastri: Who will be 2025’s Formula 1 World Champion?

By Erin Arends

Formula 1 is the pinnacle of motorsport, with 20 of the top racing drivers in the world competing for the Formula 1 Driver Championship title. More often than not, we see teammates turn to rivals as both drivers fight to be victorious. We saw it in the late 1980s at McLaren between Alain Prost and Aryton Senna, the 2013 RedBull duo of Sebastian Vettel and Mark Webber, the infamous battle at Mercedes between Lewis Hamilton and Nico Rosberg, and now, in 2025, we are seeing the new era of McLaren drivers, Lando Norris and Oscar Piastri, putting in 110% to be crowned the Formula 1 World Champion of 2025.

McLaren's 2025 driver lineup, Oscar Piastri and Lando Norris via F1

After re-establishing themselves as one of the top teams, winning their first Constructors’ Championship after a 26-year drought in 2024, McLaren aimed to make their 2025 season one of their best in recent years. From early in the season, it became clear that the title fight would remain within the McLaren garage, with both Lando Norris and Oscar Piastri consistently earning strong results and keeping them both at the top of the standings. McLaren’s step forward has given these young drivers a car capable of winning wherever they go.

The season started perfectly for Norris as he converted pole position into a victory at the Australian Grand Prix, while hometown hero Piastri got stuck in the grass during Lap 44, costing him the race and finishing P9 in front of his home crowd. However, Piastri turned things around in the following races, taking the championship lead and creating a 36-point gap after the Dutch Grand Prix. Their rivalry has stayed mostly respectful but tense, with strategic clashes and on-track battles testing the unity of the McLaren garage. Andrea Stella, team principal of the McLaren F1 team, has the delicate task of balancing fairness between his drivers as the team pursues its first driver’s title since Lewis Hamilton in 2008.

Oscar Piastri and Lando Norris battling it out on track via PlanetF1

Starting his fifth season with the team, Lando Norris has proved himself to be a smart and consistent driver. He has the ability to extract a stable race pace over long stints, get clean starts, and calmly defend his opponents, which has repeatedly placed him within the points. Lando Norris uses late-braking aggression to attack corner entries. This aggression allows him to extract single-lap pace, which is beneficial during qualifying. More importantly, Norris has displayed composure throughout his campaign, combining his consistency with a mature racecraft to convert pole positions into podiums.

Oscar Piastri has emerged as one of the fastest qualifiers on the grid, often outqualifying his teammate on Saturdays. He follows up this performance on Sundays, executing brave overtakes around the outside and creating large gaps with his pace, which has earned him 14 podiums in 2025 so far. One of Oscar’s strengths is his ability to keep his composure even under the high stakes of competing in a Formula 1 Grand Prix. This has enabled him to secure multiple pole positions and race wins this season. Piastri has proven his natural talent, matching his teammate with his raw pace and aggression.

Oscar Piastri and Lando Norris on the podium at the Hungarian Grand Prix, earning their 7th 1-2 finish of the season via SkySports

Without a doubt, the tension amongst the two papaya drivers as well as in the garage has risen, with everyone on high alert. Having both drivers in a championship fight, it is important for the team not to show their bias; however, this becomes difficult with strategic radio debates, differing views on team orders, and tricky on-track battles. Andrea Stella, along with McLaren CEO Zak Brown, has made it clear that both drivers are free to race as long as they keep it clean. The challenge in this is ensuring that everyone sticks to those boundaries as the pressure of the title race intensifies.

As the season approaches its final four races, the points gap continues to remain minuscule, with the difference only being one point (as of 6 November 2025). While four-time World Champion, Max Verstappen, has made recent improvements, closing the gap between himself and the championship leader to a mere 36 points, the papaya duo remains the clear favourites. Regardless of who claims the ultimate victory, the Norris-Piastri battle has been crucial in defining the new era of McLaren and has given them each the opportunity to earn their first-ever Formula 1 World Driver’s Championship.