It was only a matter of time – and in Canada, it finally happened. The first proper on-track battle between the two McLaren drivers ended in heartbreak for Lando Norris, who found himself in the wall while fighting his team-mate for position.

But how exactly did the incident unfold and how did Lando even get himself into a position to challenge for P4? That’s where the telemetry tells the story.

Canadian GP data analysis: Lando Norris shines – until the clash

After a disappointing qualifying session that saw him start from P7, Norris looked like a man on a mission.

Up until the crash, he was arguably the fastest driver on track. Just the fact that he was in contention for P4 on a circuit like Montreal says a lot.

Credit must also go to the McLaren strategists, who played their cards brilliantly.

Looking at the race pace data, we can see that Norris was matching Piastri lap for lap. The gap to Verstappen and the Mercedes pair was marginal at best.

Norris began the race on hard tyres with the clear objective of extending his first stint as much as possible.

This allowed him to switch to the medium compound for the latter part of the race—on a clear track, no less—which helped him close the gap rapidly.

After his second stop, Norris found himself around five seconds behind Piastri.

Within just over ten laps, he’d reeled that in to under a second. That was aided in part by backmarkers and Antonelli holding up Piastri ahead.

At this point, Norris had two-lap fresher tyres and clearly better pace. The battle for fourth was on.

After a few unsuccessful attempts, the real opportunity came in Lap 66 at the hairpin.

Telemetry shows Norris with a significant top-speed advantage thanks to the slipstream.

He dove down the inside of Piastri into the hairpin with a beautifully clean move—no contact, no lock-ups.

But that move compromised his exit, allowing Piastri to fight back.

Both drivers had DRS active down the back straight, running side by side all the way to Turn 13.

Even with the weaker exit, Norris got a boost from the dirty air behind Antonelli and edged ahead slightly.

Still, Piastri had the inside line into the final chicane.

A later braking manoeuvre and razor-sharp car placement allowed him to reclaim the position with style.

Now the tables had turned. Norris was in the slipstream with the big speed advantage heading into Turn 1.

He attempted to dive down the inside, but the space simply wasn’t there.

Misjudgement on Lando’s part – and this time it didn’t end well.

Oscar Piastri vs Lando Norris: McLaren F1 2025 head-to-head scores

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

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

Could he have gone around the outside? With hindsight, it certainly looks like the better option.

But when you’re travelling at over 200 km/h and making decisions in milliseconds, it’s never that simple.

In the end, it was Lando who paid the price.

The incident not only ended his race but could’ve easily taken out Piastri too.

Thankfully for McLaren, it didn’t.

Norris was quick to own up to the mistake and offered a heartfelt apology to his team-mate after the race.

Still, the damage was done – literally and figuratively.

He lost out on 10 potential points and in a tight championship fight that could be massive come season’s end.

From a fan’s perspective, though, this may just be the start.

We’ve been waiting for a proper on-track duel between the two papaya pilots and if this is anything to go by, the real battle lies ahead.

Read next: Canadian GP conclusions: Lando’s silver lining, Ferrari sack fears, key Russell change