His maneuver against his teammate in Singapore caused discussions. Now Lando Norris admits that there will be consequences.
17.10.2025, 11:49
dpa
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- Following Lando Norris' crash with teammate Oscar Piastri in Singapore, McLaren will be taking action before the end of the season. Both drivers are keeping quiet about what they are.
- Mercedes has confirmed the driver duo of George Russell and Andrea Kimi Antonelli for 2026.
- Four seats are still available for the coming season - one at Red Bull, two at Racing Bulls and one at Alpine. Who will fill these seats will be decided in Mexico.
The stable duel for the drivers' world championship in Formula 1 continues to come to a head. For the runner-up Lando Norris, his controversial maneuver against McLaren teammate and championship leader Oscar Piastri in Singapore recently has consequences for the all-important weeks ahead.
"Things will be reviewed and it will affect me until the end of the season," said the 25-year-old Briton ahead of the US Grand Prix in Austin. "It's not like I'm getting away with everything either."
What had happened?
Norris had put Piastri in trouble right after the start with an overtaking maneuver, and the latter had immediately complained to McLaren officials over the radio. It was not the first incident between the two, who are always given a free ride by the team management.
Piastri's lead in the championship standings shrank to 22 points over Norris. Defending champion Max Verstappen is 63 points behind in the Red Bull and therefore still has a chance of a fifth triumph in a row. The team championship has already been decided in favor of McLaren. The fact that the title was initially celebrated on the podium in Singapore without Piastri, who was still giving interviews after the frustrating race, further fueled the discussions.
When asked by a reporter at the Circuit of the Americas what the consequences would be, Norris laughingly evaded the question. Piastri was not necessarily any clearer either. "The conclusion was that what happened in Singapore was not the way we want to race as a team," he said. Norris also took responsibility for this. The team's internal rules would not change now. "The issue is closed and we are now looking to the future," said Piastri.
Mercedes confirms driver duo for 2026
While the relationship between the two drivers at McLaren is tense, the situation at Mercedes is completely different. The team led by Toto Wolff has confirmed the duo of George Russell and Andrea Kimi Antonelli for next year as well.
After the summer flirtation with Max Verstappen, which ended in nothing, it was clear that at least Russell would stay. It was all about the contract details. His victory at the last race in Singapore probably only played into the British driver's hands to extend his contract by several years.
For the Italian rookie, on the other hand, it was not clear after the European races what his immediate future would look like. He was even publicly criticized by the boss himself for his performance. This seems to have been an incentive, as the 19-year-old finished in the top 5 in the last two races in Baku and Singapore.
Who will take on Verstappen?
That leaves four seats open for 2026 - one at Red Bull, two at Racing Bulls and one at Alpine. Competition for the three seats is particularly fierce at Red Bull.
Isack Hadjar is in pole position for the seat in the main team. In his first season, the Frenchman is showing how far he has already come and how consistently he can drive. In the 18 races so far, the 21-year-old has finished in the points eight times - he even made it onto the podium in the Netherlands.
By moving up to Red Bull, he would displace Yuki Tsunoda, who is not getting on as well as he should with the difficult-to-drive car. The Japanese driver occasionally manages good races, such as in Baku when he finished sixth, but with only five points finishes in 16 races for Red Bull, there can be no talk of consistency.
A demotion back to Racing Bulls, where Tsunoda has already driven for four seasons, would be a step backwards and is rather unlikely due to the up-and-coming youngsters in the Red Bull talent pool. The 25-year-old is therefore fighting for his Formula 1 future in the last six races of the season.
The same applies to New Zealander Liam Lawson. In his first full season, the 23-year-old has failed to fully convince. After his brief adventure with Red Bull at the beginning of the year, he first had to find his feet with Racing Bulls.
Alpine decision probably depends on Red Bull
He can now keep up with his team-mate Hadjar in both qualifying and the race. In Baku, he achieved his best result in Formula 1 with fifth place - but then came the disastrous weekend in Singapore. He hit the wall twice in practice and only managed 15th place in the race.
Tsunoda and Lawson's rivals are two drivers who are active in Formula 2: Briton Arvid Lindblad (18) and Irishman Alexander Dunne (19). Both have already completed free practice sessions in Formula 1 this year - Lindblad with Red Bull, Dunne with McLaren.
The 18-year-old Briton is part of Red Bull's junior program and has long been linked with a move up to the premier class. However, it is questioned whether he is mature enough for this. The lack of consistency and various driving errors that have led to crashes this Formula 2 season probably speak against him.
Dunne, on the other hand, was still involved with the McLaren Academy until a few weeks ago. Due to a lack of prospects - Norris and Piastri still have multi-year contracts - the relationship was terminated. His performances in the two free practice sessions in Austria and Monza have nevertheless attracted the attention of the paddock.
The seat rotation at Red Bull is to be decided next week in Mexico, when the die will probably also be cast at Alpine as to who will drive alongside Pierre Gasly for the 2026 season.
