Lando Norris's dominant victory in Mexico has catapulted him back to the top of the World Championship standings, his first time leading since April. However, with just four races remaining, McLaren teammate Oscar Piastri remains only a single point behind Norris.
Piastri struggled in Baku and crashed three times before qualifying for Singapore. He has since qualified ahead of Norris, but his performance was hindered by an incident where he was involved in a three-wide battle with Hamilton at the start of the race.
McLaren team principal Andrea Stella says that Piastri's struggles were due to him driving the car differently than usual. "It looks like in this regime you have to drive the car in a way that adapts to the fact that the car slides a lot and can slide and produce lap time," Stella said. "So, we identified a few things that we could do with the car and a few things that he could do with the driving."
Stella also acknowledged that Piastri had been less comfortable in recent races due to a change in strategy from McLaren. However, Brown denies accusations of favoring Norris over Piastri. "It's nonsense," Brown said in an interview. "We're trying so hard to give them equal opportunity and let them race hard."
Red Bull's Max Verstappen is still 36 points behind Norris but has been gaining ground. The team principal Laurent Mekies attributes the recent improvement to better understanding of the car's weaknesses.
Meanwhile, concerns are being raised about potential penalties for drivers who intentionally delay their pit exit during qualifying. The FIA introduced a queuing system in an effort to prevent near-misses between cars on track but acknowledges it may look ungainly.
There has also been debate over whether Leclerc or Verstappen gained an unfair advantage by cutting corners during the Mexican Grand Prix. The FIA's stewards made no comment, citing their independence and reluctance to discuss decisions publicly.
Norris's victory in Mexico marked a significant turning point in his championship bid, while Piastri remains very much in contention for the title. With just four races remaining, fans are eagerly anticipating the conclusion of this year's drama-filled championship.
Piastri struggled in Baku and crashed three times before qualifying for Singapore. He has since qualified ahead of Norris, but his performance was hindered by an incident where he was involved in a three-wide battle with Hamilton at the start of the race.
McLaren team principal Andrea Stella says that Piastri's struggles were due to him driving the car differently than usual. "It looks like in this regime you have to drive the car in a way that adapts to the fact that the car slides a lot and can slide and produce lap time," Stella said. "So, we identified a few things that we could do with the car and a few things that he could do with the driving."
Stella also acknowledged that Piastri had been less comfortable in recent races due to a change in strategy from McLaren. However, Brown denies accusations of favoring Norris over Piastri. "It's nonsense," Brown said in an interview. "We're trying so hard to give them equal opportunity and let them race hard."
Red Bull's Max Verstappen is still 36 points behind Norris but has been gaining ground. The team principal Laurent Mekies attributes the recent improvement to better understanding of the car's weaknesses.
Meanwhile, concerns are being raised about potential penalties for drivers who intentionally delay their pit exit during qualifying. The FIA introduced a queuing system in an effort to prevent near-misses between cars on track but acknowledges it may look ungainly.
There has also been debate over whether Leclerc or Verstappen gained an unfair advantage by cutting corners during the Mexican Grand Prix. The FIA's stewards made no comment, citing their independence and reluctance to discuss decisions publicly.
Norris's victory in Mexico marked a significant turning point in his championship bid, while Piastri remains very much in contention for the title. With just four races remaining, fans are eagerly anticipating the conclusion of this year's drama-filled championship.
I don't get why they're making such a big deal about Oscar Piastri crashing three times in Baku 
... one crash isn't gonna hurt anyone! And can we talk about how stressful it must be for him and his team to try and keep up with Lando Norris? 
I feel bad for Piastri that he's having a tough time, but at the same time, I'm like... just let them drive already! 
lando norris is back on top and i'm loving it! he's been so consistent lately and his win in mexico was insane 
it's still mad that oscar piastri is only a point behind him tho, but like, good for him to keep pushing 
so many twists and turns this season and i'm here. for. it 
. Anyway, back to F1... what do you think is going to happen with the championship? Are we gonna see a lot of drama like they're always saying on the news?
but at least we get to see the drivers being super competitive now 
u think they actually got away with something or is the FIA just not gonna say anything? 
maybe they should be more open about it tho?
but what's with all these penalties in qualifying? it sounds kinda unfair to have to deal with queuing systems and stuff like that. 
and i'm still confused about the whole cutting corners thing... did leclerc or verstappen really get a free pass or something?! 
I don't get why Brown is denying any favoritism towards Norris, it seems kinda fishy to me 
. Can someone explain what's really going on behind the scenes here? 
. And yeah, the strategy change might not have helped Piastri as much as he thought it would 
.
. It's like they're trying to prevent near-misses, but I get that it looks kinda weird 
. And what's up with all these controversies around corner-cutting? Can't we just focus on racing 
. And can we talk about how messy the pit lane rules are now? 
I know the team principal said it was because he drove differently than usual, but it sounds like McLaren had to make some changes to the car too 
but it's also clear that mclaren needs to work on their strategy 
as for max verstappen, yeah he's still 36 points behind but he's gaining ground so let's not count him out just yet 
. Can we please just get some transparency here? ⏱
. It's crazy how much drama there is in this championship right now 
. And, honestly, it's kinda weird how Max Verstappen is suddenly gaining ground on Norris 
. Not everything will work out as planned, but that's where growth happens, right? 
. Can we apply that same mindset to our own lives? Let's think about it 
!
anyway, the championship is heating up and i am SO here for it 
