The race for the Formula 1 World Championship 2025 is becoming more and more a team-internal duel between Oscar Piatri and Lando Norris. The two McLaren pilots have won ten of the previous 13 seasonal races, and the upcoming race in Hungary will also be considered the big favorites next Sunday (August 3 from 3:00 p.m.). Ex-team boss and TV expert Günther Steiner explained in an exclusive conversation with RTL/NTV and Sport.de why he is still expecting the team-in-depth World Cup in an intensification.
So far, the two McLaren drivers have largely got along well. There is no classic chopping order with a number one and a number two drivers at the British racing team, instead both Oscar Piatri and Lando Norris are allowed to fight open for their driver’s world championship.
With the exception of the Montreal crash, when Lando Norris crashed in June when I was over -motivated against his team -mate, this march route, also referred to by team boss Zak Brown, has also been “papaya Rules”.
But the temporary peace could soon come to an end. The long-time Haas team boss Günther Steiner, who is now for RTL When TV expert is in use, it is certain that it could soon be fought with significantly harder bandages.
“18 points are a lot, but not much. You only need a failure of Oscar Piatri and Lando, then it is in front. It always goes back and forth. I think that if you drive as you drive at the moment, let it go. But at some point it should really be in the World Cup fight, then both drivers forget the papaya rules,” said the South Tyrolean in the exclusive conversation with RTL/NTV and sport.de.
Steiner: “I lose a friend rather than a world championship”
For Steiner it is clear that the ambitions of the two drivers, their first and possibly the only world championship in the premier class of motorsport, are more important than the team of peace at McLaren.
“Even if both friends are and you always hear from the good harmony: both want to become world champions! And I always think: I lose a friend rather than a world championship. The opportunity to win a Formula 1 World Championship has very few in life. If I were Lando and I am only a few points away, I would briefly forget the papaya rul. But I don’t need to explain that. the 60-year-old sure.
In the current driver ranking, Oscar Piatri with 266 points is ahead of Lando Norris with 250 points. Defending champion Max Verstappen is already distant with 185 points and is the last remaining driver with residual chances on the World Cup.