‘We want to beat each other’ – Norris expects ‘tougher times’ battling Piastri amid McLaren pair’s potential rivalry

Lando Norris and Oscar Piastri have spoken openly about the prospect of a tight title battle developing between them as the 2025 season rumbles on, with the McLaren team mates taking a victory apiece over the first two rounds.

After a statement win from Norris in mixed conditions in Australia, it was Piastri who emerged as the strongest of the two drivers last time out in China – meaning McLaren have now triumphed at the last three Grands Prix including the 2024 finale in Abu Dhabi.

Arriving in Japan, Norris tops the Drivers’ Championship on 44 points, from Red Bull’s Max Verstappen on 36, Mercedes’ George Russell on 35 and Piastri on 34, though the latter’s tally could have been much higher without his late-race drama on home soil.

Given McLaren’s strong start to the year and their apparent potential to fight for victory at any kind of track, there was plenty of interest about how the fight between Norris and Piastri might develop when the pair faced the media at Suzuka on Thursday.

SUZUKA, JAPAN - APRIL 03: Lando Norris of Great Britain and McLaren looks on in the Paddock during — Lando Norris arrives in Japan leading the Drivers’ Championship

Asked if he would rather be going up against someone inside or outside his team, Norris said: “I’m not too fussed. I think the good thing about having the guy you’re competing with in the team is that you can see everything they are doing. I can see what he does and how he does it.

“Trying to do sometimes what he does is not always easy, and I’m sure it is the same the other way around. Always trying to do what another driver does is not always an easy task, but at least I have that knowledge. When they are in another team, sometimes you don’t have those bits of knowledge.

“At the end of the day, I don’t mind. I’m ready to battle whoever it is, and I’m excited.”

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As for whether he can see a rivalry developing with Piastri like Lewis Hamilton and Nico Rosberg at Mercedes through the 2010s or Ayrton Senna and Alain Prost in the late-1980s, Norris added: “I mean, they’re good examples, they’re nice people to compare to.

“I don’t think we’ve probably got quite to that stage yet, but it’s our first time that we are really going head to head, and I’m sure there is going to be a lot more instances where we’re battling or racing against each other.

SHANGHAI, CHINA - MARCH 23: Zak Brown, Chief Executive Officer of McLaren Second placed Lando — Piastri led a McLaren 1-2 finish last time out in China

“It’s round three now, we’ve only done two races. Many things can happen, and I’m sure there are going to be plenty of trickier or tougher times. But like I said last week, we acknowledge this. We both know we’re ready for these kind of situations.

“We want to beat each other but we’re also team mates, so it’s not an easy dynamic. It’s never easy to get the balances perfect but we’re working as hard as a team to make sure that we do.”

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Piastri, meanwhile, shared a similar train of thought when quizzed on whether he sees Norris or reigning four-time champion Verstappen as his most fearsome opponent for the title

“I think for myself, Lando is obviously in the same car as me and it’s a strong car, and I know that Lando is a very strong team mate,” he commented.

“Max is obviously an incredibly strong driver as well, so to pick one is very difficult, but I think just because we have the same car, probably Lando.”