Piastri: Game plan is to finish two spots ahead of where I’m starting

Just as they did in Japan today. After Piastri took things to the next level with his stupendous Chinese Grand Prix weekend, today Norris bounced back by beating his McLaren teammate in qualifying for the Japanese GP at Suzuka – by the finest of margins.

While Red Bull’s Max Verstappen stole the show with a glorious pole-winning lap, Norris was happy with P2, but one senses that Piastri wanted more.

The 23-year-old Australian said during the post-qualifying press conference: "I’ve been pretty comfortable through qualifying. I think the first lap of Q3 was a good one, the second one just a little bit off the mark in a couple of places. I’ve had to dial myself in a bit more this weekend than I did last race and it’s taken a bit longer to get there."

On the 0.044s margin that separated the top three today, Piastri said: "Looking at the margins and how it performed, I’ve been pretty happy. Just those little margins – when it’s so tight – make all the difference, clearly. It felt good, especially at the start of Q3. The last lap didn’t come together as I wanted, but I think it is still all to play for in the race.

"We have a great car, we have good pace, but the other teams are not as far away as people think. This morning was pretty tight. Max has done a great job of ending up on pole, but we are still in the fight for a win. I don’t mind if it rains or not – I welcome whatever comes," insisted Piastri.

As for Sunday’s Grand Prix, Piastri was adamant: "Obviously the game plan is to try and finish two spots ahead of where I’m starting. But apart from that, we’ll see what we get."

While McLaren comfortably top the 2025 Formula 1 Constructors’ standings with only two races run, the points gap between the top four in the Drivers’ Championship – from Norris on top to Piastri in fourth – is only ten points, with Verstappen P2 and Mercedes driver George Russell P3.