McLaren to dominate in 2025? Norris or Piastri to lead charge?

McLaren had the car, especially in the latter half of 2024, to have won both F1 titles this past season. Even Max Verstappen reckoned (hypothetically) he would've also won the Drivers' title driving a McLaren or Ferrari for that matter. Who are we to argue with a four-time F1 World Champ?

Stats show that at the season finale Abu Dhabi Grand Prix, McLaren duo Lando Norris and Oscar Piastri lined up P1 and P2 on the grid. The pole-winning time was a quarter-second quicker than the next-best team, namely Ferrari. Verstappen was 0.350s adrift and half a second quicker than the best of the Mercedes pair.

Norris' top time on the night at Yas Marina Circuit is notable in that the two-tenths gap he enjoyed over Piastri covered the next five cars, confirming the MCL38 had the edge as the fastest car in the pack. Ditto on race day, Norris controlled proceedings to score his fourth win of the season. Piastri might've made it a Papaya one-two had Verstappen not had other plans.

Nevertheless, Zak Brown's team won the 2024 F1 Constructors' title - McLaren's first since 1998 - and crucially has the edge heading into 2025, the final year of the current rules package where margins will be tighter as meaningful development of the final chapter for this generation of F1 cars.

With the Constructors' title drought over, their ninth in the bag, the target is the Drivers' title (also won for them by Lewis Hamilton in 2008), with Norris leading the charge as he did this year, or will Piastri have a say on the matter?

On the 2025 F1 title charge for McLaren, Herbert reckons: "Lando is missing that intimidation factor at the moment. He has been very open that maybe he hasn’t brought his A-game this year. Hearing from what I am hearing, he has accepted that this is what he now has to do: to change.

“This is a really good moment where many drivers are thinking the same as Max has done. It is going to be massively interesting to see who comes out on top next year. It might well be scrappy next year, but that’s what you want in Formula 1: some sharp elbows allied to common sense. Max loads pressure on everyone.”

One of Brown's shrewdest moves was dispensing with Daniel Ricciardo and, in his place, scooping up 23-year-old Oscar Piastri, who has emerged as one of the stand-out youngsters of the next generation. The gritty Aussie has forced Norris to raise his game.

Herbert rates Piastri highly: “He has the right attitude. It is about him, and he doesn’t care about anyone else. That is what he has to take into a fresh season in which McLaren will start as favourites. He has Mark Webber as his manager. Oscar knows what he needs to do. If he comes out of the blocks dominating, then he will be in a very good place, but I don’t think Lando is going to allow that.

"Lando has been magnificent in his qualifying performances and has still raced brilliantly. The competition will push the pair of them. I like Oscar’s strong mindset. The next big head-to-head next season is going to be between Oscar and Lando! McLaren will dominate ahead of Red Bull, then Ferrari and Mercedes," predicted Herbert.

In Verstappen, McLaren had a formidable opponent who single-handedly took the fight to McLaren as his teammate Sergio Perez struggled to make it beyond Q3 on Saturdays and then trundled around the back while Verstappen finished on the podium or won races.

To win the title they have to beat Verstappen, which is not an easy task, as Herbert explained: "Verstappen’s dive bomb on Oscar Piastri was all about intimidation. McLaren is going to be a threat to him next year. We have seen Oscar has the potential to win races and perhaps a world championship, as of course does Lando.

“So, when you are wheel to wheel as they were in Abu Dhabi, neither was going to give way. You heard the radio communication and Oscar said, ‘Good,’ when he heard Max had been given a penalty. That’s great. We have someone else prepared to stand up to Max.

“That is where we have seen a shift this season. George has been having a few issues and verbal confrontations with Max. This is exactly what Max has done so well for years, using all the weapons he can, and that includes intimidation. The other drivers this year have said, ‘OK, we are up for that.’ Leclerc, Russell, Oscar, and Lewis, and we will be seeing more of it from Lando as well," foresees Herbert. (Quotes supplied by CoinPoker)