Teams are revving up their engines, the start of the championship is fast approaching, and the Woking-based team is preparing to defend the constructors’ title won in the final race of 2024. On the eve of testing in Bahrain, the CEO of the British team, Zak Brown, spoke about McLaren’s internal hierarchy for the 2025 season.
The heated battle for the constructors’ title in the final part of 2024 ultimately favored McLaren. The Woking-based team clinched a championship in Yas Marina that had been missing from the “papaya” team since 1998, positioning Andrea Stella’s squad among the favorites for the upcoming season.
Although McLaren repeatedly demonstrated in 2024 that it was globally the strongest team, the outlook for 2025 appears different. Ferrari, which became a serious title contender only midway through the 2024 season, is determined to assert itself from the outset. And certainly, Red Bull and Mercedes will not want to just sit back and watch.
The 2025 championship promises to be fiercely contested, even more so than the season just past. While all indications point to a tight battle in both the drivers’ and constructors’ standings, the Woking team does not seem inclined to change its risky 2024 approach. For months, many criticized McLaren for not allowing Norris to seriously fight Verstappen for the drivers’ championship. But Stella and Brown never wavered in their stance: McLaren’s internal hierarchy always placed Lando Norris and Oscar Piastri on equal footing. And that will remain the case in 2025.
Zak Brown Confirms McLaren’s Hierarchy for the 2025 Championship
“We will continue to let them fight,” Zak Brown told the media. “They will start the season with the same points. We treat our drivers fairly, and that is what we will continue to do.” The British team’s approach remains unchanged, at least for now.
Zak Brown does not rule out slight adjustments: “Every weekend, we obviously learn more, in every aspect. I also believe that we can learn from things that perhaps we should have done differently last year.”
Learning without losing identity. McLaren has two important drivers, and Zak Brown is certain of that, maintaining the philosophy of a two-pronged attack: “Norris and Piastri will be free to fight on track. We have two great drivers, and I can’t wait to see them battle cleanly.”
Lando Norris and Oscar Piastri will be able to start competing as early as the Bahrain tests. The three-day session in Sakhir will be the first official on-track outing for the 2025 cars, which will have a total of 24 hours to fully understand the new single-seaters. Then, the championship begins: the teams will meet in Australia in mid-March for the Melbourne GP, scheduled for Sunday, March 16.
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