Max Verstappen reveals McLaren’s weak point in the 2025 F1 title fight. Max Verstappen says the main challenge for McLaren in the championship may be the internal rivalry between Lando Norris and Oscar Piastri.

Max Verstappen believes that the true limit that could challenge McLaren is the internal rivalry between Lando Norris and Oscar Piastri. Ahead of the Brazilian Grand Prix, the Dutch driver claims to have identified the factor that could create turmoil inside McLaren. Lando Norris and Oscar Piastri are separated by just one point in the championship standings, while Verstappen holds a 36-point lead over the duo.

Thanks to continuous updates from the Milton Keynes team, Max Verstappen has managed to reduce the gap to McLaren. The Austrian team, together with Verstappen, is fully focused on winning a fifth consecutive world championship—a strategy that contrasts with McLaren, which must manage an internal battle that appears to have slightly spiraled out of control.

McLaren’s approach of keeping both drivers on equal footing seems not to have paid off so far, given the challenges Andrea Stella and Zak Brown have faced in managing the two McLaren drivers. As we know, the drivers have shown frustration over certain race decisions, even coming into contact with each other in two notable incidents: Singapore and Austin.

Max Verstappen, however, stated that this situation is not a problem for him. He admitted he would gladly face it if he could count on a car package as competitive as McLaren’s—the technical package that has proven to be the fastest this season.

Max Verstappen confident in his chances to win

When asked whether having Red Bull’s full attention represents an advantage, the four-time world champion explained that, in a sense, it is a positive situation. He said that, having been part of the team for a long time, he knows it very well, and they have already achieved many successes together. Therefore, there is certainly an opportunity to win.

He also acknowledged the internal distractions at McLaren, noting that despite this, they still have a very fast car. “If you asked me what I’d prefer,” he said, “I’d take the distraction. It doesn’t matter; give me the fastest car and I’ll drive it as it should be driven. It could even work in my favor, but the key is simply to have a faster car. We need to stay ahead of them. It’s really that simple.”