Max Verstappen names the one thing rapid Lando Norris still needs to prove in Formula 1

Max Verstappen doesn’t yet know whether he’ll be an active participant in this year’s F1 title race or an outsider looking in. It could well be a McLaren head-to-head between Lando Norris and Oscar Piastri.

Heading into the Emilia Romagna Grand Prix, Piastri leads the championship by 16 points. After a disastrous home race in Australia, he’s won four of the last five.

The race in Melbourne, where Norris scored his only 2025 victory to date and Piastri finished ninth, is keeping things fairly close. It’s been the only real glimpse of the Englishman’s best form.

Norris has been beset by mistakes in qualifying, most notably a crash during Q3 in Saudi Arabia. He outpaced Piastri in Miami qualifying but lost places at the start after Verstappen shut the door in typically ruthless fashion.

The four-time world champion is currently lurking a further 16 points behind in third. Verstappen is reliant on Red Bull nailing their upgrades to have any chance of extending his title streak.

Max Verstappen says Lando Norris needs to show his speed more consistently

Verstappen was asked to give his thoughts on the McLaren drivers in an interview with The Telegraph. He spoke highly of Piastri following the Saudi Arabian GP, where he followed him home in second after an early penalty.

The Red Bull superstar praised his rival’s ‘very calm’ approach and noted that he ‘barely makes mistakes’. As for Norris, Verstappen is confident he has the speed to be a champion.

However, he did suggest that the 25-year-old needs to show that pace more consistently. His results this year have been a little erratic given the performance of the car.

“Lando, I think, has the pace,” Verstappen said. “It just hasn’t really come out yet over a [sustained] period of time.

“But I think it’s still going to be a tight championship for them. I don’t know where I’m going to be. I’m just trying to maximise every result.

“At the end of the day, we can’t rely on them to make mistakes. It has to come from us.”

How Sebastian Vettel could help Lando Norris beat Max Verstappen

In that Saudi Arabia press conference, Verstappen said Piastri was benefitting from the guidance of Mark Webber, his manager. Now it’s been suggested that Norris should hire Sebastian Vettel as an advisor.

While he stressed that Norris has to make his own decisions behind the wheel, Timo Glock says it could be helpful to speak to a legendary driver who has encountered many of the same challenges.

Norris has repeatedly played down McLaren’s advantage this year, while Piastri has been open about it. It seems one driver is trying to control expectations, while the other is comfortable dealing with them.

There’s an underlying theory that Norris is quicker than Piastri when he’s at his best. But he’s rarely hit that level in 2025 and needs to halt his teammate’s momentum soon before his task becomes too great.