Is Oscar Piastri ready to challenge Lando Norris for the 2025 title? The Australian shares his thoughts on potential driver showdown

Oscar Piastri is confident in his ability to challenge Lando Norris for a title fight in 2025 and beyond. Speaking exclusively to select media, including Sportskeeda, in Italy, the McLaren driver expressed his readiness to be a future title contender.

With McLaren's impressive surge in performance positioning the team as title favorites for 2024 and 2025, the question is whether Oscar Piastri can rival his more experienced British teammate. Ahead of his on-track battle with Norris at the Italian GP, Piastri told Sportskeeda he felt confident in his ability to fight for victories. McLaren's decision to allow both drivers to race each other in Monza may have been controversial, but the Melbourne-born driver has proven he can handle the pressure and compete hard against his teammate.

Oscar Piastri’s composed mindset and raw speed have enabled him to outshine Norris on several occasions this season. In his debut year, he struggled with tire management and race management, while in 2024, he has highlighted qualifying as an area for improvement. Despite these challenges, the 23-year-old has demonstrated that he is just as hungry for success and capable of performing at the highest level.

In a conversation with Sportskeeda and other select media at McLaren’s motorhome, Oscar Piastri reiterated his confidence in his ability to challenge for the championship. He highlighted the importance of maintaining consistency and acknowledged there is always more to learn. As McLaren considers its title contender for 2024, the young Aussie is emerging as a strong candidate for 2025 and beyond.

When Sportskeeda asked Oscar Piastri if he feels ready to take on his teammate should McLaren contend for the title in 2025, he said:

“I think so yeah. Like I said, the highs of this year, I have been very happy with and could have been good enough. I think there’s still room to improve. But I think it's just doing that consistently, which is is the big part. But I'd be much more concerned if I was leaving weekends going, ‘wow I really need to find something special or really need to work on this.' It's always just been ‘I can do that I just need to be able to do it every single time.'"

"So I think next year I feel like I'm ready I've certainly still learned a lot of things through this year and there will still be a lot of things to learn next year. But, you know, there's also the case of I might not ever have that opportunity again. So I need to make sure that I'm ready in some ways. But I feel like regardless of that, feel like I can be ready for a championship.”

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Oscar Piastri aims for consistency in closing gap to Lando Norris in 2024

Oscar Piastri noted that while he has occasionally matched or surpassed Norris' pace this season, maintaining consistency throughout all race weekends remains a significant challenge. At Zandvoort, he qualified third and finished fourth, while Norris won the race with a 22.7-second margin over Max Verstappen. In Italy, Piastri qualified second and finished the race in second place, ahead of Norris. The Australian feels he is now on par with his teammate and is focusing on enhancing his consistency, aiming not only to match but to surpass him.

When Sportskeeda asked Oscar Piastri whether he feels he's closing the gap to Lando Norris and performing at a similar level in 2024, he replied:

“Yes, I think so. I think for me the biggest thing has been doing it every week. I think there's been some weekends where I've just not been on the same level, but I also think there's been some weekends where I've been very, very strong. So I think, you know, last year there was, I would say, more weekends where I need, especially in the race where I needed to find a step to be able to go with Lando. I feel like this year, a lot more of the time, I'm not saying all the time, but much more of the time I've been, I feel like I've been able to go with him and on some occasions be a little bit quicker. But yeah just doing it every single weekend is kind of the difficult part.”

McLaren team principal Andrea Stella spoke to the media, including Sportskeeda, after the Italian GP and acknowledged that the rules of engagement between Oscar Piastri and Lando Norris will be reviewed. He felt that particularly after their clash in the race where Piastri finished ahead of Norris which could have led to significant repercussions.

Had Oscar Piastri finished behind Norris, Norris' gap to Verstappen would have been smaller. Despite Piastri's confidence in his ability to challenge Norris, the remaining races in the 2024 season might require him to adopt a supporting role. McLaren is currently eight points behind Red Bull in the constructors' championship, while Norris trails Max Verstappen by 62 points in the drivers' championship. Stella emphasized that with both titles still attainable, choosing a lead driver will be crucial for maximizing their chances in 2024.