US Grand Prix 2025: Three Talking Points Ahead of Austin

McLaren duo Oscar Piastri and Lando Norris have dominated for most of the season, but reigning champion Max Verstappen is waiting to capitalise on any mistakes.

Read on as we take a look at three of the biggest talking points ahead of the 2025 US Grand Prix.

Tension has been growing between Norris and Piastri over the past few races, and the gloves are starting to come off.

After edging out Piastri to claim a podium finish in Singapore, Norris closed the gap on his teammate to 22 points. With just six races remaining, neither can afford to take their eye off the finish line.

The growing tension between both drivers worsened in Singapore when Norris collided with Piastri while attempting to overtake him.

he Australian driver was unimpressed with his teammate’s aggressive antics and questioned whether the move was in line with McLaren’s internal code of conduct around on-track battles.

It was the latest in a series of incidents where Piastri has felt that McLaren are favouring his teammate. For instance, Norris lost second place in Italy because of a slow pit stop. Piastri moved in front of him but was ordered to give the spot back to Norris.

Norris was allowed to change strategy after a difficult first lap in Hungary, which ultimately helped him beat Piastri despite being three places behind.

Things could come to a head if McLaren continues to favour Norris in Texas.

New Zealand-born driver Liam Lawson is fighting to save his Formula 1 career, and his performance in Singapore did not help his chances. The Kiwi driver had his worst weekend of the season, suffering two session-ending crashes in practice. He eventually finished 15th in the final standings and is on borrowed time.

Red Bull ruthlessly dropped him from the first team after two races. With the Kiwi driver hardly showing any tangible improvements, they could ditch him from the franchise completely. They would not have to look too far for a replacement, with academy talent Arvid Lindblad ready to take Lawson’s place at a moment’s notice.

Lindblad is already a contender for the 2026 seat at Racing Bulls, with Isack Hadjar expected to move up to the senior team to partner Verstappen in place of Yuki Tsunoda.

Lawson needs to find a way to tilt the odds back in his favour at the US GP, with his once-promising career hanging by a thread. Despite his struggles, Lawson remains a popular pick with sports bettors in New Zealand. They will be hoping for a positive performance this weekend.

Odds of 2.50 on NZ betting sites for Lawson to secure a points finish could be good value if he manages to avoid any mishaps ahead of the race. While he will fancy his chances of bouncing back, anything other than a statement display could force Red Bull to pull the plug on his position in the franchise.

George Russell and Mercedes picked up only their second win of the season in Singapore. Mercedes are looking to tighten their grip on second place in the constructor’s championship.

Russell’s dominating performance in Singapore reminded the paddock that the Silver Arrows still have fight left in them.

Kimi Antonelli’s fifth-place finish also helped Mercedes consolidate their position. They are 27 points clear of Ferrari, with Red Bull still lurking.

Russell’s performance in Singapore has inspired the team, but Mercedes has urged fans to manage their expectations ahead of the US GP.

Trackside engineering director Andrew Shovlin is proud of the W16 but admitted the car is limited in several areas, though still able to win races, which is a good sign.

But the W16 has performed well only in certain tracks, so Shovlin believes there may still be tough times ahead for Mercedes.

“Just to try and manage expectations here,” he said. “If you look at the circuits that we've been strong at, and particularly the races that we've won this year, they're relatively low-speed tracks.

“What we haven't had so much of in those tracks is the high-speed cornering content, and that's perhaps an area where we've struggled a bit.”

The US GP will be a huge challenge for Mercedes, but they will be keen to hang on to their position in the constructors’ championship.