Between the two McLaren Formula 1 drivers, it was a race defined by strategy, executed with razor-thin margins. Lando Norris secured the 200th Grand Prix victory in McLaren’s illustrious history by relying on a bold one-stop strategy at the 2025 Hungarian Grand Prix, successfully defending his position in the final laps from team-mate Oscar Piastri. After a race start that saw Norris fall back in the early stages, the single pit stop was ultimately his only realistic option to turn the situation around and fight for the win.
The race consisted of seventy laps filled with constant shifts in strategy and performance. While it may not have been the most thrilling event of the 2025 Formula 1 season from a pure entertainment standpoint, it was a highly tactical contest. The final outcome was decided by tenths of a second, with Lando Norris climbing to the top step of the podium. The British driver made just one pit stop and managed to hold off Oscar Piastri in the final laps of the race.
This important win not only brought joy back to Lando Norris but, ironically, its foundation was laid in the very first laps of the race. During those opening stages, Norris found himself down in fifth place, stuck behind Mercedes driver George Russell and Aston Martin’s Fernando Alonso. After overtaking Fernando Alonso, Norris became trapped behind George Russell, and at that moment, the McLaren strategists decided to commit to a single-stop approach, while most of the front-runners opted for a two-stop strategy.
Even on Saturday, during qualifying, it was already clear that having both cars starting from the front put the Woking-based McLaren team in a prime position to play the strategic game. Given that this was a race that could have swung either way between a one-stop or a two-stop strategy, with relatively narrow margins between the two, McLaren’s position allowed them to be flexible. In this context, and also taking into account the pit stop problem that affected Charles Leclerc and slowed his progress, McLaren saw an opening to overcome their qualifying disadvantage to the Ferrari driver.
“It was tough, we didn’t expect to go for the one-stop initially, but after the first lap it became our best option… In the final stint it was really difficult, Oscar was closing in and I had to push to the limit. It turned out to be a perfect result,” explained Lando Norris after the race. In the closing phase, the British driver had to resist the pressure from his team-mate Oscar Piastri, who was on fresher tyres after executing a two-stop strategy.
Lando Norris managed the final laps with clinical precision, always maintaining just enough of a gap to prevent Oscar Piastri from getting close enough to attempt a clean overtaking manoeuvre. As a result, Piastri was forced to consider more aggressive moves that ultimately did not work out. “I didn’t expect this strategy to allow me to win,” Norris admitted. “I thought second place was the most I could aim for, but I knew from the first stint that my pace was good. The problem was being stuck behind George Russell, which meant I couldn’t really push as I wanted.”
“I knew I needed to drive in clean air. I was aware that if I had the opportunity to run in free air and push hard, I could make this one-stop strategy work. It’s always a bit of a gamble, but it also depends on driving perfect laps and not making any mistakes. I’m really happy with how it turned out,” continued Norris.
“At the end of the first stint, we decided to go long, and in the end, it turned out to be one of the best races of my Formula 1 career,” Norris concluded. He also highlighted that, once again, the management of race pace and tyre degradation has become one of his strongest assets, particularly in the context of McLaren’s landmark 200th win in Formula 1.
In a Grand Prix where every tenth of a second counted, and where traffic in the final stages added an extra layer of difficulty, Oscar Piastri also felt that he had performed at his best. On a track like the Hungaroring, where overtaking opportunities are notoriously limited unless a car has a significant pace advantage, there was not much more that Piastri could have done except attempt a few bold and aggressive overtakes.
“I pushed as hard as I could,” said Oscar Piastri after the race. “When I realised that Lando was going for a one-stop strategy, I knew I would have to overtake him on track, but doing that here is easier said than done. I tried everything, but today we were simply on the wrong side of the strategic choices. In the second half of the race, the car felt better, but overall, it was still a good weekend.”
McLaren has consistently tried to maintain equal treatment between its two drivers throughout the 2025 Formula 1 season, generally avoiding major differences in race strategy. However, at the Hungarian Grand Prix, the circumstances made it necessary to diverge in approach. Beating Charles Leclerc’s Ferrari required a bold and creative strategic plan, so Oscar Piastri was not surprised by the call from the pit wall. “At that point, we didn’t have much to lose, so it wasn’t a huge surprise,” said Piastri. “I don’t know if trying the undercut on Charles Leclerc was the right decision, but that’s the way it went.”
McLaren’s performance in Budapest showed not only the effectiveness of their strategic calls but also the strength and maturity of both Lando Norris and Oscar Piastri. For Norris, it was a race that showcased his ability to execute under pressure, while for Piastri, it was further confirmation of his competitiveness and determination, even when circumstances worked against him.
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