Brundle: McLaren May Need to Pick Between Piastri and Norris Sooner in Title Race

McLaren could be forced to choose between backing Oscar Piastri or Lando Norris earlier than expected in this year`s Formula 1 championship battle, according to F1 analyst Martin Brundle.

Before this weekend`s Emilia Romagna Grand Prix, Piastri holds a 16-point lead over Norris. McLaren`s strong performance, including a perfect scoring record during a recent Sprint weekend, has significantly distanced them from Max Verstappen, who currently trails the championship leader by 32 points.

The Miami race marked McLaren`s most dominant showing yet, with their cars finishing over thirty seconds clear of George Russell in third place. Russell is now 38 points behind Piastri after the first six rounds of the season.

Speaking on “The F1 Show,” Brundle commented on the challenge McLaren faces: “The problem McLaren are going to have is if Max Verstappen and George Russell keep pumping in the results. Mercedes, in particular, has an update coming at Imola that they`re quite excited about, and I`m sure all teams will improve to some extent.”

He continued, “If they`re competitive, there`s no doubt in my mind that Piastri and Norris will take points off each other. So they`ve got to be careful that they`re not so focused on each other that somebody else comes in and wins the championship, as Alain Prost did in 1986.”

Current Driver Standings (Top 5):

Verstappen doesn`t have to worry about his Red Bull teammate taking points from him and has largely maximized his own score, keeping him a realistic contender in the championship.

Both Red Bull and Mercedes are counting on upgrades over the upcoming triple-header of races and a regulatory change concerning flexible wings at the Spanish Grand Prix later this month to potentially narrow the gap to McLaren.

Brundle noted that delaying a decision on team strategy until a driver is mathematically out of contention would likely push it late into the season, around October or November. “So, McLaren might have to take a decision before that to make a choice,” he said. “It depends how it unfolds, but they won`t be thinking about that until the summer break, at least.”

Does Verstappen Race Piastri Differently Than Norris?

The Miami race provided the first significant wheel-to-wheel exchanges over several laps between Verstappen and the McLaren drivers this season.

Although Piastri had overtaken Verstappen in the rain in Melbourne and was assertive in Saudi Arabia, those moments didn`t involve the sustained, close combat seen in Miami.

Norris experienced Verstappen`s aggressive style last year, where Verstappen often came out on top, denying Norris potential wins in races like Austria, the USA, and Mexico City.

When asked if he believes Verstappen races the two McLaren drivers differently, Brundle responded, “100 percent, unquestionably. I think he knows that there`s something a bit more street fighter about Oscar Piastri, and he saw it in Jeddah.”

“I think Max knows he`s dealing with a slightly different animal when Oscar`s in his mirrors compared to Lando,” he added.

“It`s the positioning of the car; there`s a decisiveness in what he did. You can`t fault Lando`s race craft either, as his moves on the Mercedes and later Max were excellent.”

“But somehow, I have absolutely no doubt, and also based on things Max says, that he recognizes Oscar is a different proposition in wheel-to-wheel racing.”

Brundle further commented, “There`s just something about the way… Lando isn`t quite as decisive in his car placement when overtaking, and he will learn from that.”

“I think that`s the current situation, but I wouldn`t say it will necessarily remain that way for the rest of the season.”

Is Piastri the Championship Favourite?

Coming into this season, Norris was considered a co-favourite for the championship alongside Verstappen, especially after outperforming Piastri last year and with McLaren showing strong progress.

However, since his mistake at the season-opening Australian Grand Prix, where he went off track and spun, Piastri has turned the situation around, outscoring Norris by 39 points over the subsequent five races.

Brundle stated, “He`s won four of the last six races and simply looks like genuine world championship material. I think his improvement rate has been quite impressive, and he learns things very quickly.”

“Towards the end of last year, I believe we saw this potential. Did I expect it to manifest so strongly and quickly? Probably not,” he admitted.

“He`s just winning constantly and appears so confident and undisturbed by anything. He simply has `it` there. I think his racecraft is slightly stronger than Lando`s.”