Will the Norris Piastri dynamic change amid F1 Title battle?

Norris currently leads Piastri by 24 points in the 2025 F1 Drivers Championship, as the former has been enjoying a strong run of form and results, winning in Mexico and then cleaning up in Sao Paulo, as the Australian has been unable to turn his struggles around.

While McLaren bosses, CEO Zak Brown and Team Principal Andrea Stella, have insisted that they do not and will not back one driver against the other, there has been that niggling consensus that Norris is the driver they want to win this season, with controversial team orders in Monza showing as much.

With three races remaining, Piastri may still win the title if he turns things around, but for now it seems Norris is the favorite, especially as Max Verstappen fell back to 49 points behind the Championship leader.

However, retired F1 driver Juan Pablo Montoya claims the fight for the 2025 F1 Drivers' Crown will have a long-lasting effect on the relationship between the McLaren teammates.

Montoya said: "The dynamic at McLaren will change, whoever wins the championship. I think the relationship between the drivers and the team will go sour, because one will say, 'You didn't do enough to help me win the championship'.

"It will be hard to keep both Oscar Piastri and Lando Norris happy. How will they manage the 'Papaya rules' next year? Those rules become irrelevant if McLaren don't have a competitive car next year.

"That's the million-dollar question still: who will have the dominant car next year?" the Columbian mused. "It could be Alpine, Aston Martin, or Mercedes; we don't know.

"If Red Bull end up being slower than most other cars, Max Verstappen probably won't even stay the whole year. He'll take a sabbatical," he predicted.

Shifting his focus to the current season, as F1 gears up for the 2025 Las Vegas Grand Prix next weekend, Montoya feels Verstappen will strike back.

He said: "I predict Red Bull to win the Las Vegas Grand Prix. I think Max Verstappen will be really good.

"Lando Norris will finish on the podium; the big question is, has Oscar Piastri given up? I think if Norris beats Piastri in Las Vegas, Piastri will be done, mentally. Las Vegas is the last opportunity for Piastri to make a difference and beat Norris, which is perfect.

"It's a do-or-die race on a street circuit, long straights and big DRS zones. It's going to be an amazing race," the seven-time Grand Prix winner concluded.

(Quotes from PokerStrategy)