Lando Norris gives ‘make life too tough’ verdict over losing F1 championship lead

Lando Norris achieved a great start to the 2025 season after taking the drivers’ title lead early on. The Briton was on the trajectory to bolster his position in the standings and build a huge gap from the get-go. However, Norris committed mistakes in recent races that have caused him to lose crucial points in the standings. McLaren’s Oscar Piastri currently leads the table, with the former falling short by over ten points. Hence, the 25-year-old shares the blunt truth about his shortcomings in performances, especially during the qualifying season.

Lando Norris had remained critical of McLaren’s challenger despite it being the fastest car against the rivals. The Briton still managed to clinch a victory at the season-opener in Australia but couldn’t replicate this performance in the latter races. Norris hoped to make a difference and gain great points in his championship ambition at the Saudi Arabian GP. Surprisingly, the 25-year-old crashed out in the qualifying session and could only start P10.

Norris still achieved a great recovery drive and ultimately finished in P4 after barely shying away from a podium finish against Charles Leclerc. The Briton is known for being too critical of himself and his performances despite achieving some highly coveted victories. The 25-year-old now accepts that he did not do a great job of making his life easy, especially over the qualifying sessions.

After a botched attempt at achieving the pole position in Saudi Arabia, Norris admitted that he made his life too tough on Saturdays. Still, he emphasizes that his performances in the main race on Sunday remained pretty strong. The 25-year-old pointed out that he possessed the pace and the confidence required to become the ‘best’ driver on the grid against the rivals.

Lando Norris ‘not surprised’ after losing title lead to Oscar Piastri

Oscar Piastri has remained extremely consistent in his efforts to maximize performance over the race weekends. The Aussie has already achieved three race wins over the first five races and snatched the title lead from Lando Norris. As such, Piastri is now the favorite to win his maiden drivers’ title in the 2025 season.

Piastri couldn’t fight with Norris for the title in the 2024 season due to the McLaren’s ‘Papaya Rules’ that disallowed the two from fighting. Moreover, the Aussie played the team game on multiple occasions that cost him crucial points. However, this season is a different story as the 24-year-old is prepared to fight hard with his British counterpart for the title.

Norris pointed out that he wasn’t much surprised after losing the lead in the drivers’ standing to Piastri. The 25-year-old acknowledged that his mistakes over the qualifying sessions on Saturday ultimately cost him the position. The Briton has already reassured that his priority was to maximize points for the team and only then focus on his own results. Therefore, the two drivers are likely to help one another move up the pecking order on the track and bolster McLaren’s position in the constructors’ championship.

McLaren is still the team to beat for the rivals, as they cannot quite bridge the gap in terms of pace. Only time will tell about how the development war pans out towards the end of the final season of the ground-effect era. As things currently are, Woking could easily achieve both championships with little to no competition for the title. Still, Max Verstappen and Mercedes remain steadfast in their attempts and are leaving no stones unturned to provide a stern competition at the forefront.

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