Oscar Piastri will try to defend McLaren’s constructors’ title in 2025. Together with Lando Norris, he’s just delivered the team’s first crown since 1998.
McLaren haven’t retained the trophy since 1991, when Ayrton Senna and Gerhard Berger brought home what was their fourth consecutive championship. At the individual level, Piastri will look to be the one who dethrones Max Verstappen.
He scored his first two Grand Prix victories in 2024, underlining that he has the raw talent to win a title. His maiden win in Hungary was tarnished by the McLaren team orders debate, but his performance at the Azarbaijan GP, where he brilliantly passed then held off polesitter Charles Leclerc, was masterful.
The Australian must now improve in qualifying if he’s to mount a genuine challenge. Norris thrashed him 21-3 in 2024, and took all eight of the team’s pole positions.
McLaren have been, on balance, the fastest team in F1 since Norris’ win in Miami at the start of May. With minimal changes to the regulations over the winter, their two drivers are perhaps best-placed for top honours in 2025.
But the 2024 season was one of the closest ever in terms of the field spread, particularly among the frontrunners. That means it could only take one significant breakthrough within the top four for a new favourite to emerge.
Oscar Piastri warns McLaren that Mercedes are dark horses for 2025 F1 season
Speaking to Speedcafe, Piastri previewed the 2025 title fight. He feels that McLaren and Ferrari are the only known quantities.
The Scuderia finished just 14 points adrift this year and were the form team in the final third of the season. They’ve now signed the sport’s most successful driver in Lewis Hamilton to partner Leclerc.
That arguably gives Fred Vasseur the strongest line-up on the grid, even ahead of Zak Brown. Mercedes, meanwhile, have taken a risk on 18-year-old Kimi Antonelli as George Russell’s teammate.
The Silver Arrows were a rather lonely fourth in the end, but in Great Britain, Belgium and Las Vegas, they were the class of the field. If they can widen their operating window, then Piastri hinted they could challenge.
| Position | Constructors’ Standings | Points |
| 1 |
McLaren Racing |
666 |
| 2 |
Scuderia Ferrari |
652 |
| 3 |
Red Bull Racing |
589 |
| 4 |
Mercedes-AMG Petronas |
468 |
Red Bull, meanwhile, have signed Liam Lawson, who only has 11 races of F1 experience, as their replacement for Sergio Perez. But nobody would discount Verstappen if the car is even remotely competitive.
“Ferrari will probably come out of the blocks strong,” Piastri said. “I think Red Bull and Mercedes are probably the two big question marks.
“Mercedes in the right conditions are ballistically quick. Red Bull, or certainly Max, I think they’ve probably rediscovered a bit of form or a few things in the last part of the season.
“I think it’ll be more of the same in terms of four teams really battling it out. Hopefully we can be in the fight from the start, and that’ll make our constructors’ bid, and certainly our drivers’ championship bid, a bit easier I think.”
The ‘noise’ that suggests Mercedes may already be pinning their hopes on 2026 regulation changes
Mercedes’ three ground-effect cars to date have been an enigma. Even in 2022 and 2023, they showed flashes of contending pace with a win in Sao Paulo and a couple of pole positions.
They looked like they were turning those flashes into consistent race-winning form during the summer when they took three victories in four events. But it turned out that the car was only comfortable on smooth tracks with manageable temperatures.
If they can’t become more versatile, then they’ll be nothing more than an occasional nuisance to McLaren and Piastri. Jolyon Palmer has ‘no confidence’ that Mercedes will improve after three stagnant seasons.
Toto Wolff may already be pinning his hopes on the 2026 regulation changes. According to Ted Kravitz, the ‘noise’ is that Mercedes are extremely confident in their new engine, so they may be inclined to shift their focus early in the season.
