The internal title battle at McLaren defined the 2025 season—Piastri explains that his relationship with Norris remained stable despite the pressure
Oscar Piastri spoke about the McLaren team rivalry in the 2025 Formula 1 season during an episode of the High Performance podcast. Alongside teammate Lando Norris, the Australian battled for the world championship for much of the year. Despite the on-track rivalry, Piastri emphasizes that the relationship between the two has not changed and that their collaboration has remained stable off the track as well.
McLaren dominated much of the 2025 season, leading to an internal battle between Norris and Piastri for the drivers’ title. In the latter stages of the season, Max Verstappen also joined the title race. The internal dynamics at McLaren drew a lot of attention in the paddock.
The team adopted an open racing strategy for both drivers, though with the clear directive to avoid collisions. At the season finale in Abu Dhabi, Norris prevailed and won his first World Championship title. Verstappen finished second, and Piastri came in third.
Piastri on his relationship with Norris
In the High Performance podcast, Piastri explains that his relationship with Norris hasn’t changed despite the close title battle. “In all honesty, I don’t think anything has really changed,” says the Australian. “I think that’s largely down to who we are as people.”
He emphasizes that both drivers are able to clearly distinguish between the competitive rivalry on the track and their personal interactions off the track. Even joint events, such as marketing activities, have not changed as a result.
No rift despite sporting rivalry
Piastri also stresses that interactions within the team have always remained respectful despite the intense sporting rivalry. While there were isolated incidents on the track where the two drivers clashed, the situation never escalated.
“It never got uncomfortable,” explains Piastri. According to him, a potential escalation of the rivalry was avoided thanks to clear communication within the team and mutual accountability.
Focus on Team Harmony at McLaren
The Australian emphasizes that internal title battles between teammates in particular can quickly escalate when emotions or tactical games come into play. However, this was not the case at McLaren.
Even minor incidents were always addressed openly.
Both the drivers and the team actively contributed to maintaining a stable working relationship. Despite a mixed start to the current season so far, Piastri sees the stable relationship with Norris as a key factor in the team atmosphere at McLaren.
