Oscar Piastri once again confirmed his remarkable precision and composure when it comes to executing high-stakes overtakes. During the 2025 Belgian Grand Prix at Spa-Francorchamps, the young Australian driver pulled off a decisive move that not only won him the race, but also sent a strong psychological message to his team-mate Lando Norris and the rest of the Formula 1 grid.
Reflecting on the moment after the race, Oscar Piastri expressed pride in the key move that defined his Sunday: “When I found myself that close going into Eau Rouge, I knew I could lift just a little less than Lando. I’m proud of that opening lap. I knew it was my best chance to win the race. I got a strong launch out of Turn 1, minimized lifting, and it paid off.” Although technically the fourth lap due to three initial laps behind the Safety Car, it was the first true racing lap—and Piastri made it count.
This was not just a victory on paper. As motorsport legend Valentino Rossi once wrote in his autobiography “What if I hadn’t tried?”—referring to his iconic last-corner pass on Jorge Lorenzo at the 2009 Catalan Grand Prix—there are some wins that carry more weight than just the points. Piastri’s overtake on Lando Norris at Eau Rouge falls firmly into that category. It was a symbolic gesture of dominance, a psychological blow in the heated intra-team rivalry at McLaren.
Oscar Piastri also had something personal to settle after losing out to Lando Norris in their fierce wheel-to-wheel battle in Austria. That moment was unusual, as Piastri is not typically known for coming off second-best in close fights. He has already built a reputation for bold but clean racing moves: surprising Charles Leclerc with a daring late-braking maneuver in Baku last year, passing Lando Norris around the outside at Monza’s Variante della Roggia, and even forcing Max Verstappen to back off in Turn 1 at the 2025 Saudi Arabian Grand Prix. These are not isolated moments—they are part of a pattern that highlights Piastri’s top-tier racecraft.
Despite McLaren’s continuous technical excellence, which often draws most of the attention, performances like Piastri’s at Spa deserve to be spotlighted. Attacking Eau Rouge at full speed on a wet track, without any reference data and under pressure, is a feat that would have been praised universally had it been done by a Ferrari driver, Max Verstappen, or Andrea Kimi Antonelli. Yet Piastri delivered it with quiet confidence and surgical precision.
Following the Austrian setback, Piastri had already reasserted himself at Silverstone, putting in a strong performance at Norris’s home race. He was on course to win, but a penalty—handed out after Norris brake-tested him on the Hangar Straight during a restart—meant the Australian had to cede victory to his team-mate. That loss, however, did not derail his momentum.
After the costly mistake by Norris in Canada, the British driver had closed the points gap to Piastri, but with the victory in Belgium, the Australian extends his advantage to 16 points. The overtake at Spa was not just a pass—it was, in competitive terms, a slap in the face. One that could define the mental dynamics between the two McLaren drivers going forward.
The upcoming Hungarian Grand Prix may only be worth 25 championship points—or just 7 if the fight remains between the two McLaren team-mates—but its significance goes beyond the standings. A year ago in Budapest, it became clear that McLaren did not have a designated number one driver. Now, Oscar Piastri is determined to shift that balance and claim the team leadership by force.
At present, Lando Norris finds it increasingly difficult to counter the growing superiority of his Australian team-mate—a dominance confirmed not just by the championship table, but also by the number of race wins and qualifying performances. While Norris still holds the edge in experience and tyre management over a race stint, Oscar Piastri appears to be outperforming him in every other area.
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