Oscar Piastri has said he’d identified a key weakness he must address to come out on top of a fight with McLaren teammate Lando Norris.

The Australian driver had a breakthrough season in Formula 1 in 2024 as he won his debut race at the Hungarian Grand Prix, as well as following up with a second win weeks later in Azerbaijan, but still trailed home 82 points behind McLaren teammate Lando Norris.

Oscar Piastri: Qualifying better is a high priority in F1 2025

The Australian driver took a significant step forward in his sophomore season in Formula 1 but was only ever an outside contender for the World Championship as Norris proved a more consistent challenger for Max Verstappen.

Piastri’s points contribution helped McLaren secure its first world championship title since the 1998 season, with Piastri finishing the year in fourth place overall.

While his step forward compared to his rookie season was undeniable, Piastri said he has identified a key area he must improve if he hopes to challenge Norris or other rivals for the title this year.

“I think, to be honest, across the two seasons I’ve had, the story has been a little bit different,” he told media, including PlanetF1.com at the F175 season launch at the O2 Arena in London.

“Obviously last season, I think I made life difficult for myself in qualifying a lot of the year, but I felt like I improved myself as a driver in a lot of other areas, and I was able to show what I’m capable of in a lot of other areas.

“So it’s about improving across the board.

“I think making sure I qualify a bit better is probably a higher priority.

“But I think there are things that I can improve that will help me, not just in qualifying, but in general. So I think that’s that’s what I need to do.

“I know that on the weekends when I get everything together and put my best foot forward, I can be the best out there, and it’s just about trying to make sure I put that best foot forward every time I’m on track.”

While McLaren created some problematic moments on track as Norris and Piastri were left free to race each other through the middle part of the season, leading to situations like Piastri finishing ahead in Italy as their battle allowed Ferrari’s Charles Leclerc to slip through and win, the introduction of ‘papaya rules’ towards championship end resulted in some very clear examples of team harmony.

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One such example was in the Brazilian GP Sprint, where Piastri ceded the lead to Norris to help his teammate close the gap further on Verstappen’s points lead, before Norris returned the favour in Qatar – the title having already been decided in Verstappen’s favour by that point.

It’s in this harmony that Piastri believes McLaren is in a uniquely advantageous position.

“I would like to think that part of the reason why we’re in such a strong position now going into the season, is partly down to the teamwork that we’ve had together,” he said.

“Obviously, between us and the whole team, but just us two as teammates, I think hopefully we’ve set a very good example for everyone in the team.

“Of course, we’re fighting each other hard and on our own personal success, but we’re doing that in a way that’s helping the team and helping each other, an incredibly important message to keep strong and have strong value to keep racing by.

“We’re both going into the season with our eyes on winning the Drivers’ Championship, but we’ve also got our eyes on the Constructors’ Championship for the team. So that’s not going to change. I think in the last two seasons, we’ve proven many a time that we’re very respectful of each other and have a lot of respect for each other and do the right thing by each other and the team, and I think that has played certainly not an insignificant part in our success.”

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