“A difficult race”: Piastri weighs in after first-lap clash with Norris

As McLaren celebrate their monumental achievement of securing their second consecutive World Constructors' Championship at the 2025 Singapore Grand Prix, this victory was accentuated by the rising tensions between their two title-contending drivers, Lando Norris and Oscar Piastri.

Credit: Formula One

A first-lap collision and a contentious mid-race strategy call have races questions about the team's management of their two leading drivers.

The friction began just moments after the race started. Norris made a strong start and, heading into Turn 2, braked late while trying to overtake. He clipped the back of Max Verstappen's car, damaging his own front wing. This led to a moment of oversteer that caused Norris to hit his teammate Piastri wheel-to-wheel, sending the Australian worryingly close to the wall.

At the time, Piastri felt the incident was unfair and asked his team to review it. After being told that neither the team nor Race Control would take action, Piastri seemed disgruntled for the remainder of the race.

Credit: Formula One

Speaking after the race, Piastri maintained a diplomatic front but acknowledged the difficulty of the situation. "Obviously a difficult race, a difficult first lap". He stated his intention to review the footage before making further comments. "I don't think there was any intention of contact, but there was and I need to look at a replay".

The on-track tension was compounded by a strategic disagreement later in the race. As the cars approached their only pit stops, Norris was leading and had the right to pit first.

The team asked if he would consider letting Piastri pit ahead of him to protect the Australian from being undercut by Ferrari's Charles Leclerc.

This request came with history; at Monza, Norris had agreed to a similar request, only to be disadvantaged by a slow stop that put him behind Piastri, who then sportingly gave the position back.

This time, however, Norris refused the team's request and pitted first. Piastri then pitted on the next lap and also suffered a slow stop, though he was fortunate to emerge just ahead of Leclerc.

The incident raises the question of whether Piastri will be willing to "play the team game" in the future now that the "gloves come off" for the driver's title.

Despite his personal disappointment, Piastri emphasized the team's achievement. "Not the night I was looking for, but a great night for the team and a really proud moment to be part of that".

McLaren Team Principal Andrea Stella acknowledged the need to manage the situation internally. In a statement aimed at de-escalation, he assured that the drivers would work through the issues. "We will have good conversations [between the drivers], we will build from there and become stronger".

While McLaren leaves Singapore as world champions, their next challenge will be managing the intense rivalry within their own garage.