Crucially, Piastri appears to have a better feel for the characteristics of the MCL39, a car with limited front-end feedback and a set-up that demands restraint and confidence.
Norris’s aggressive braking-and-turn-in style is more affected by the car’s numbness, while Piastri’s smoother approach has brought consistent rewards. As team boss Andrea Stella puts it, Norris “works better when he is at 99% of his potential; when he tries to extract 100% things trip over”.
However, what makes the intra-team duel fascinating is what’s at stake, and not just this year, as Edd Straw points out.
“This battle matters not only because there’s a championship at stake, but because it’s a fight for McLaren’s future,” he writes. “Whoever loses will convince themselves they can turn the tables next year, assuming McLaren remains at the front through the major rule changes, but history tells us it rarely works like that.”
The stakes are very high at McLaren
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McLaren insists on giving both drivers equal status and equipment, but the outcome of this season could shift internal dynamics for good.
In F1, winning matters not just in the standings, but also in perception, and whoever takes this year’s title will be seen – internally and externally – as the team’s natural leader going forward.
Both drivers are under long-term contracts, but history suggests only one will ultimately emerge as the team’s figurehead. And if McLaren stays at the front into F1’s 2026 rules reset, being the driver at Woking could mean future titles too.
As history shows — like during McLaren’s own Häkkinen-Coulthard era – once that internal hierarchy is established, it’s rarely reversed.
So far, Piastri has looked the more complete package, but Norris is far from out of this, particularly after two victories in a row in Austria and Silverstone.
It will be fascinating battle, and whoever finishes the job at the end of the year, could end up being the new undisputed McLaren team leader in years to come.
For the full story of how Piastri’s season has come together, why Norris is under pressure, and what’s really at stake in this title fight, read the full analysis here, in our August 2025 issue.