It finally came to pass, the moment we McLaren fans dreaded but always knew was coming, when Lando Norris mindlessly took himself out of the race by attempting a move on Oscar Piastri that was never on, during the Canadian Grand Prix on Sunday in Montreal.
By his own admission and immediate apology, Norris knew that move had no business being attempted. At Circuit Gilles Villeneuve, there was no gap, no opportunity, just Lando doing what he sometimes does under pressure: fumbling. In the other McLaren, Piastri typically keeps it calm and collected.
This time, it cost Norris dearly. A bucketload of points gone, and momentum handed to his teammate in their title fight. It was the kind of mistake that, frankly, had been brewing since Papaya Rules became a thing. McLaren's fuzzy rules of engagement for their drivers.
Prior to that, Norris had already messed up in qualifying. Granted, the McLaren wasn’t the weapon it has been in recent rounds, certainly not front-row capable, but Lando is usually a touch quicker than Piastri on Saturdays. Not this time. He blew both of his flying laps and, as a result, started from P7.
Credit where it’s due, Lando did a solid recovery job on the day, until he didn't, of course.
Near the end of what was a dull race, it all kicked off
Until late on, Kimi Antonelli in the Mercedes was hanging onto P3 for dear life. The Kid doing a phenomenal job. A revelation not only this season, but live on TV on Sunday at , a revelation, bagging what I’m sure will be the first of many podiums in Formula 1. But that’s another story.
For this story, Antonelli became the cork Piastri couldn’t pop, which brought Norris into the mix. Bobbing and weaving like a fighter with a plan which was to slipstream down to the final final Turn 13-14 complex, and slip ahead, avoid the Wall of Champions, and take the place.
But Piastri had other ideas, braked as late as could be, whizzed past like Norris was looking for parking, got it stopped for Turn 13, which was key, most wouldn't that's how audacious that late braking was by the Aussie in my book.
Thus on lap 67, the pair of McLarens exited the final Turn 14 still in the same order, PIA-NOR. Then the unthinkable happened as the Briton tried a desperate move, perhaps blinded by real red mist, and almost took out his own teammate. But he parked with a broken car.
Fortunately for McLaren, it wasn’t a double DNF. Perhaps karma is on Oscar’s side, and rightly so. The Aussie continues to impress. Sure, P4 may not seem extraordinary anymore for him, but it’s a hefty haul of points, especially compared to what Norris salvaged this weekend.
McLaren's worst score in 34 races
Piastri leads the 2025 F1 championship after ten rounds, and the gap is now 22 points between him and Norris with 14 Grand Prix weekends remaining this season.
The 24-year-old Australian, once again, showed that even when things don’t go his way early on, he finds a way to rise when it counts. That P3 in qualifying set the tone and forced Norris to chase, and fail.
The pendulum has now swung firmly in Oscar’s favour. As I’ve said before, I see it being either Piastri or Norris who wins the title this year. If neither of them does, it will be because they shot themselves in the foot.
They cannot afford another Grand Prix like the one they just had. It was McLaren’s worst of the season by some distance. The 12 points match their lowest haul since Bahrain last year.
And what about Max Verstappen? One always has to ask. Once again, it seems the Red Bull is only drivable in his hands. The Dutchman was relentless all weekend, P2 in qualifying, then a faultless drive in the race, shadowing George Russell all the way to the flag.
In the end, he didn’t have enough to win, but he did eat slightly into Piastri’s championship lead. The gap is now down to 43 points. If Max keeps outscoring the McLarens, that deficit could shrink further.
History repeats itself!
For Piastri, the task is clear: keep Verstappen at bay, or at least within reach, and above all, finish ahead of Norris. That bonus haul of points from Montreal could be the difference between Oscar Piastri, 2025 Formula 1 World Champion, and Lando Norris, 2025 runner-up.
Before it even happened, as I watched the incident unfold on F1 TV, into my mind popped McLaren (!) teammates, Jenson Button and Lewis Hamilton, colliding at the exact same spot in Montreal.
Yes! McLaren teammates colliding in Canada. We’ve seen this movie before. Cast your mind back to 2011, same team, same circuit, and the same sort of craziness. That time it was Lewis and Button fighting over P6 in tricky conditions when things went spectacularly wrong.
Hamilton tried to squeeze past on the start-finish straight. Button edged jinxed left, either not seeing him or not caring, and bang. Contact. Hamilton into the pit wall. Out. Cue chaos in the garage and finger-pointing all around. The kind of intra-team meltdown that writes itself into McLaren folklore.
But here’s the kicker. Button didn’t just survive that day. He went on to win the whole race. In the wettest, most chaotic Canadian Grand Prix in memory, he carved through the field and mugged Vettel on the final lap. From hitting the wall and colliding with his teammate to standing on the top step. Unbelievable.
Hamilton: He probably hadn’t spotted me
Button made clear he hadn’t seen Hamilton, apologised afterward, and praised their mutual respect despite the incident, calling their on-track rapport “a great position to be in".
“Obviously, I’m very sorry I collided with Lewis. We spoke about it, and it’s one of those things. I didn’t know he was there... I think his driving style is aggressive and he always goes for gaps. Sometimes he’s right, sometimes he’s not... We’ve always given each other room," Button added.
Hamilton gave his side of the story: “I felt I was halfway up the outside of him and he just kept moving across… and I was in the wall. He probably hadn’t spotted me. It was an utterly fantastic performance from a truly great driver. "
In the end, both McLaren drivers described the collision as a racing incident. Remarkable race winner that day, Button is on record apologising, while Hamilton accepted some of the blame but was frustrated with the outcome. No apology on record.
Maybe there is a message therein for Norris and Piastri, as this may well be the first of many incidents between the pair during this campaign, one of whom will be the 2025 F1 World Champion. Remember Hamilton vs Fernando Alonso? Hamilton vs Nico Rosberg? When teammates are their own worst enemies.
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