First sparks fly at McLaren as Oscar Piastri blocks Lando Norris in pit stop during Spanish GP. Tension rises at McLaren during the Spanish GP.

First tensions in the McLaren garage during the Spanish GP: Oscar Piastri blocked Lando Norris during the final pit stop — here’s what happened.

This ninth round of the 2025 Formula 1 season follows the same trend as the previous races. McLaren continues to prove the strongest, untouchable even after the new technical directive: the fight is down to two. In Spain, the first tension emerged in the McLaren garage: Oscar Piastri blocked Lando Norris during the final pit stop. Let’s look at what happened.

This year feels like a repeat of 2023: total domination. Only one thing might stir things up — the start of a fierce battle between Piastri and Norris for their first drivers’ world title. So far, however, nothing has happened: sometimes the team holds them back, other times, like in Barcelona, one of the two is clearly superior to the other.

But yesterday, in the McLaren garage, a hint of tension surfaced — one that could be the drop that spills the glass.

We’re in lap 56 of the Spanish GP and the stewards call out the Safety Car to recover Kimi Antonelli’s Mercedes. The gap between Oscar Piastri, in first, and Lando Norris, in second, is 3.651 seconds. Taking advantage of the situation, all the drivers pit to switch to soft tyres for the final 10 laps. McLaren calls both drivers in.

As shown in the image above, the mechanics have already completed the pit stop on car number 81: they’ve stepped aside and the car has been lowered. Oscar Piastri could have driven off immediately, allowing his teammate a clean stop.

But instead, no. As shown in the following image, Oscar remains stationary until Norris reaches the pit box, forcing him to slow down to avoid contact with the other McLaren. The intent behind the move seems clear: delay Lando, who is considered his main — and perhaps only — real rival within the team.

We don’t know for certain whether there were issues with clutch release, or if it was indeed a move as tactical as it was “unsportsmanlike”, considering the target was his teammate. This is Oscar Piastri: composed in every situation, aggressive, and with one single goal — to become world champion.