Max Verstappen sends McLaren a chilling reminder this F1 title race is alive
World champion dominates in Suzuka to claim Red Bull’s first victory of a troubled season, leaving Lando Norris and Oscar Piastri to fight among themselves
Lando Norris says he did not need a reminder of Max Verstappen‘s quality after the four-time world champion upset the odds to win the Japanese Grand Prix.
McLaren had won the opening two races of the season – one each for Norris and Oscar Piastri – and were fastest in every session at Suzuka until the final seconds of qualifying.
Verstappen produced a scintillating lap from his previously underperforming car to steal pole from Norris and that proved crucial in an uneventful race, where only one of the top 10 finished higher than their starting position.
His fourth successive Japanese Grand Prix win means Verstappen has cut Norris’s championship lead to just a single point.
F1 driver standings
1. Lando Norris (McLaren) 62pts
2. Max Verstappen (Red Bull) 61pts
3. Oscar Piastri (McLaren) 49pts
4. George Russell (Mercedes) 45pts
5. Kimi Antonelli (Mercedes) 30pts
6. Charles Leclerc (Ferrari) 20pts
7. Alexander Albon (Williams) 18pts
8. Lewis Hamilton (Ferrari) 15pts
9. Esteban Ocon (Haas) 10pts
10. Lance Stroll (Aston Martin) 10pts
See the rest of the standings on F1.com
And Norris insists he never had any doubt the Dutchman would be a challenge despite Red Bull’s slow start to the season.
“I get a lot of questions asking if am I surprised when Max does a day like yesterday or today,” he said.
“I guess people expect me to say yes but I don’t think there is a reason to be.
“I don’t think I ever have. I have always said I have a lot of respect for Max. I don’t need anyone to tell me what Max is capable of doing.
“I still believe that we can have good races and go toe-to-toe and some days he will come out on top and some days I will.
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Drama in the pit lane as Verstappen and Norris exit side by side jostling for the race lead!#F1 #JapaneseGP pic.twitter.com/TmdkvM1tuW
— Formula 1 (@F1) April 6, 2025
“Red Bull seem to maybe have caught up a little bit.
“But they have not been that bad the whole season. This weekend he has been very good. I expect him to be challenging us every weekend.”
The pair, who clashed several times during their title battle last season, came together on the pit exit as Norris accused Verstappen of “forcing me off” on to the grass.
On reflection, the British driver said he had “no issues” with the incident and Verstappen joked that Norris was simply making sure the grass was “nice and cut”.
Will Norris vs Piastri rivalry hamper McLaren?
Verstappen does not expect to be on the pace of the McLaren in the coming races but believes a lot can happen over the course of the season.
“We still have work to do but it does show that if we really nail everything we can be up there,” he said.
“It has not been the easiest start of the year, we are not where we want to be in terms of performance.
“It is a very long season, a lot can happen. You always try to maximise performances, that is all you can control and we will see in 21 races – good or bad.”
Piastri, who won in China, was pushing Norris in the final laps and told his team he believed he had the pace to trouble Verstappen.
McLaren were happy not to initiate a switch and the Australian settled for third.
“I said what I felt. The team were happy with the way things were and if I was in Lando’s position, I would also have been happy with the way things were,” Piastri said.
“I said what I felt in the car and that’s all there is.”
Hamilton: My side of Ferrari garage is underperforming
Lewis Hamilton wants to see “positive changes” from Ferrari at the Bahrain Grand Prix after suggesting his car is underperforming compared to that of his team-mate Charles Leclerc.
It was another difficult race for Ferrari in Japan, with Leclerc fourth but comfortably adrift of the leaders and Hamilton seventh – just one place ahead of where he qualified.
Ferrari came into the season with many expecting them to be title challengers but, despite Hamilton’s sprint win in China, the Scuderia have struggled for race pace.
They were also hit by a double disqualification in China, for breaching regulations on skid block wear and car weight.
Hamilton is concerned his car is lagging behind Leclerc’s in terms of performance.
“I’m really hoping in the next race we’ll see hopefully some positive changes,” Hamilton said.
“Through the first three races there’s been a bit of a deficit between both sides of the garage on some elements of the car.
“On my side, underperforming. So it’s good to know.
“With what I had that is the best result I could get.”
“I think we are probably the fourth fastest at the moment and I think we are a little bit off the other guys in terms of performance, downforce level wise.
“So we’ve got some work to do to close the gap.”
