Jos Verstappen ruthless on McLaren’s Las Vegas DQ: “Massive error – the pressure on them is now huge”. Jos Verstappen criticizes McLaren after the Las Vegas double disqualification.

F1 | McLaren disqualification, Verstappen shows no mercy: “big mistake, now the pressure is huge”

The Las Vegas Grand Prix ended with a dramatic twist for the 2025 championship. McLaren faced a double disqualification after a major misjudgment, putting Max Verstappen right on the heels of Lando Norris. Jos Verstappen, father of the Dutch champion, spoke out sharply about the oversight by the Woking-based team.

The double disqualification of Lando Norris and Oscar Piastri in Las Vegas shook McLaren and reopened the championship battle, reducing Norris’ lead to just 24 points over Max Verstappen and Oscar Piastri. Initially, the issue was thought to be fuel-related, but it was later revealed that excessive plank wear on both McLarens caused the disqualification.

Speaking on the situation, as reported by Crash.net, Jos Verstappen did not hold back in his criticism of the team: “This is a big mistake by McLaren, a huge mistake, yes. Why push so far to the limit? Perhaps it really was an error, or maybe the car simply wasn’t performing as it should and they were forced to do it,” the father of the world champion explained.

He added, “I spoke briefly with Max before the start. He already had a feeling that they would be disqualified.”

“The pressure on McLaren is now enormous, and they will feel it,” the former F1 driver continued. “It’s still true that if Max wins all the remaining races and Norris always finishes second, then Lando Norris becomes world champion. But Oscar Piastri is still in the fight too, and he isn’t exactly thrilled at the moment.”

“You can clearly see the difference between the two McLarens on track, in how they handle the corners. One slides, the other doesn’t, and that raises questions. In any case, it will be an incredibly exciting season finale, and for Max everything needs to go perfectly. But he still has nothing to lose and can give his all. And he will,” Jos Verstappen concluded.

The 2025 championship has reopened, with Max Verstappen back in contention and McLaren forced to cope with the highest pressure of the season.

With Qatar and Abu Dhabi looming back-to-back, the 2025 title fight has been blown wide open. McLaren arrived in Las Vegas as clear favourites; they now head to the desert under the heaviest pressure of the entire season, while Max Verstappen finds himself right back in the hunt.