By Simon Wilkes
Red Bull driver Max Verstappen does not feel like he is in a ‘fight’ for the drivers championship with McLaren pair Oscar Piastri and Lando Norris due to their superior pace.
The Dutchman has been dominant in recent years but seemingly faces a real challenge for his F1 drivers crown, which he won comfortably in 2024 with 437 points.
British driver Norris came second last year, on 374 points, but it is his McLaren team-mate Piastri leading the way heading into this weekend’s Spanish Grand Prix in Barcelona.
Top of the pile
The Australian is top of the pile on 161 points after winning in China, Bahrain, Saudi Arabia and Miami – but Norris is only three points behind after wins in Australia and Monaco.
Verstappen lies third on 136 points after taking the chequered flag in Japan and Imola.
And although he is hanging on to the McLaren duo, the Red Bull admits he feels they have the faster cars at this point in the season.
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Fighting talk
Verstappen told the press in Spain: “For me it doesn’t feel like a fight.
“I just try to do my best, have a bit of fun out there.
“It’s not like this season, up until this point, is going to be in my memory forever.
“I always try to do my best but this year, so far, had some real positives but also some negatives where some races we were really off the pace, which is not enjoyable.”
Aggressive style
Piastri has locked horns with Verstappen several times so far this season – and knows the flying Dutchman always poses a threat on race weekends due to his aggressive racing style.
The Aussie told Sky Sports: “I don’t think he [Verstappen] can be counted out.
“The gap is not very large at the moment, and they’ve genuinely been competitive at a decent number of circuits now.
“Of course, there have been weekends where we’ve been stronger, but I think they’ve been developing their car, finding more performance.
“So, I think at this point, Max is definitely still in the title race.”
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