The Formula 1 world is witnessing a dramatic internal battle, not just on the track but also behind the scenes, as McLaren’s Lando Norris openly refutes all criticism aimed at him following his performance at the Azerbaijan Grand Prix. While his teammate Oscar Piastri grapples with “silly mistakes” and Red Bull’s Max Verstappen quietly closes the points gap, Norris remains steadfast in his stance, declaring he has nothing to regret and is unconcerned by outside opinions. The race in Baku was not just a test of driving skill but also a trial of mental fortitude, where every decision and every word could trigger powerful waves of controversy.

Norris: “I Don’t Really Care How People Look at It”

Immediately after the Azerbaijan Grand Prix concluded, Lando Norris faced a wave of criticism from fans and experts alike. Many argued that he had missed a “golden opportunity” to significantly narrow the points gap to his teammate Oscar Piastri, especially after Piastri’s disastrous crash on the very first lap. However, Norris did not hesitate to counter these opinions with a defiant attitude. “I did everything I can,” he stated. “The opportunities were there; I maximize every single weekend like I can. It’s not a missed opportunity; every race is an opportunity.”.

This statement from Norris was not just a personal defense but also a deep insight into the pressure F1 drivers face. He emphasized that finishing seventh, while not the desired outcome, was the best possible result under challenging circumstances. “Every race I finished second or worse this year was an opportunity lost,” Norris explained. “I don’t really care how people look at it.”. Norris’s bluntness sparked debate; some praised his resilience, while others suggested he was evading responsibility.

Norris’s Struggles in Baku

To fully understand Norris’s performance, one must consider the difficulties he faced throughout the Azerbaijan Grand Prix. The trouble began during Saturday’s qualifying session, where a messy lap, including a slight brush with the wall, left him in a disadvantageous starting position. To make matters worse, McLaren sent him out on the track too early in the session, when the evolving surface still had more grip to offer. Norris argued that with overtaking being notoriously difficult in Baku, his chances of climbing higher were compromised before the lights even went out. “Of course I wanted more, so it was not a good result,” Norris admitted. “I couldn’t do anything more. It was lost yesterday. It’s just impossible to overtake, so I look back to yesterday more than anything today.”.

On Sunday, things didn’t get any easier. Norris was trapped in relentless DRS trains, making it impossible to pass his rivals. Adding to his woes, McLaren fumbled with yet another sluggish pit stop, the second in as many races. Norris believed that without this delay, he could have gained two more positions. Instead, he had to settle for extracting every ounce of performance from a frustrating weekend, satisfied that he had left nothing on the table under the tough circumstances. “I could have ended up in the wall and gone long and something worse happened,” he said. “I felt like I was close to maximizing today. It didn’t maybe look like it from the outside, but we struggled with the pace. It’s just too difficult to overtake. I’m doing the best I can. I know I’ve still got a lot of points to make up against a pretty good driver, an incredible driver.”.

Piastri Admits Mistakes: “Not My Finest Moment”

While Norris was trying to quell the wave of criticism, his teammate, Oscar Piastri, was confronting his own serious errors. The Formula 1 championship leader admitted to making “simple errors,” “silly mistakes,” and suffering “lapses in judgment” after crashing his McLaren on the opening lap of Sunday’s Azerbaijan Grand Prix. “Certainly not my finest moment,” the 24-year-old told Sky Sports. “I just anticipated the start too much and, yeah, silly simple error really.”.

This crash not only ended Piastri’s race prematurely but also marked a rare blemish on his nearly perfect season. He explained that he failed to anticipate the “dirty air” as he should have, causing him to enter the corner too fast and lose control. “I’m certainly not blaming it on anything other than myself,” Piastri firmly stated. “Just didn’t make the judgment calls that I needed to at the right time and that’s obviously a disappointment.”.

Prior to Baku, Piastri’s campaign had been nearly flawless, with his only significant mistake being a wide moment in Melbourne that left him in ninth place. But Azerbaijan proved to be a weekend where everything went wrong. To add insult to injury, he also received a five-second penalty for a jump start, a penalty he never even had the chance to serve. “Friday was a tough day. I think Saturday the potential was very good. I had a lot of sequences or sectors that were incredibly strong and just never got it all together,” he said. “And then today, just more silly mistakes.”. Despite this, Piastri tried to find a silver lining. “I would be more concerned if I was slow and trying to make up for it that way and causing and having these errors because of that,” he reflected. “The fact that they’re just simple lapses in judgment… it’s obviously not a position I want to be in or put the mechanics in because it’s been a rough weekend for them. But if I’m trying to find a silver lining, then I suppose I have that.”.

Verstappen Back in the Title Fight?

While McLaren was mired in internal troubles, Red Bull’s Max Verstappen was quietly building momentum. His victory in Baku narrowed the points gap and served as a stark reminder to McLaren that Red Bull’s fight is far from over. Even before Verstappen’s latest win, McLaren Principal Andrea Stella had warned that the Red Bull star remained a genuine factor in the title fight. When asked if he shared that view, Oscar Piastri replied: “I don’t know. I’m not going to rule him out, but I’m honestly not too concerned with that. I’m just trying to bounce back from this weekend and put in the best performances that I can, and I know if I get back to where I can be, I’ll be more than okay. So that’s what I’m going to focus my energy on.”.

Piastri is also aware of Verstappen’s potential impact on the championship race. “It can go both ways for you. If Max is in the middle and I’m ahead, then it’s good for me. If it’s the opposite way, then that’s bad for me,” he explained. “But ultimately, I want to make sure that my performances are at the level that they should be, and then I’ll let the rest play out as it will.”.

For his part, Verstappen downplayed any talk of a comeback, arguing the gap was still far too wide. “I don’t rely on hope, but it’s seven rounds left, 69 points is a lot, so I personally don’t think about it,” he said. Instead, he is focused on taking it one race at a time, doing what he has been doing all season: “Just trying to do the best we can, try to score the most points that we can, and then after Abu Dhabi, we’ll know.”.

With Max Verstappen seemingly back in championship form and McLaren’s drivers showing chinks in their armor, was Baku just a blip in the championship story, or was it the turning point where the balance of power begins to shift? Only time will tell, but one thing is certain: the 2025 F1 season is becoming more dramatic and unpredictable than ever. The battle is not just on the track but also a psychological war, where each driver must contend with pressure, mistakes, and colossal expectations. And against this backdrop, Norris’s defiant declarations, Piastri’s errors, and Verstappen’s powerful resurgence are crafting a compelling championship narrative, promising many more surprises in the final races.