Max Verstappen blow as Piastri makes major F1 2025 title admission

Oscar Piastri admits that the F1 2025 Drivers’ Championship battle is now likely to come down to a straight fight between him and McLaren team-mate Lando Norris.

With nearest challenger Max Verstappen having fallen 81 points off top spot, championship leader Piastri is now looking to McLaren team-mate Norris as his main challenger for the crown as they battle it out in the “best” car on the grid.

Max Verstappen out of F1 2025 title running?

Additional reporting by Thomas Maher

McLaren has kicked on impressively from their 2024 Constructors’ Championship win to become the clear standard of F1 2025, though for a time reigning four-time World Champion Verstappen was keeping himself in the title hunt at the wheel of the Red Bull RB21.

But with just one podium finish in his last six grands prix, Verstappen’s chances have dwindled with McLaren on a run of three consecutive one-two results.

Piastri blunted Norris’ momentum with victory at Spa, extending his lead to 16 points, and ahead of the Hungarian Grand Prix, he was asked if he now considers this title fight a two-horse race between the McLaren drivers.

“I suppose so,” he confirmed.

“I think every weekend now, or the last few weekends anyway, it’s been Lando and I.

“I expect our competition to still be strong and put up a good fight, especially at certain tracks through the rest of the year, but whether that comes from Max or Ferrari or Mercedes or someone else, maybe, we never really know.

“So, I’m not too concerned about what happens in that. I’m just trying to win each race and extend the lead.

“But I think clearly Lando and I are in the same car, which is the best, and he’s naturally going to be the closest competition.”

Oscar Piastri vs Lando Norris head-to-head in F1 2025

👉 F1 2025: Head-to-head qualifying statistics between team-mates

👉 F1 2025: Head-to-head race statistics between team-mates

With McLaren strengthening their grasp on an F1 2025 title double, it means the chances of a first-time World Champion being crowned this year are becoming increasingly probable.

The slight advantage is with Piastri as it stands, and he was asked whether he feels confident that he can secure a maiden World Championship this season.

“I think I have a lot of confidence in myself that I can do it, yes,” he affirmed.

“Not every weekend has been perfect, but there’s not many weekends in my whole life that have been perfect, so I think just trying to put together a solid, consistent year is ultimately going to be an important thing.

“But I think the pace in the last few weekends, I think especially Spa, I’ve been very confident in and very proud of, and I think I’m more than capable of continuing that for the rest of the year.

“So I’m confident that I can do it, but it’s not going to be easy.”

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