Days after celebrating the retention of the world constructors’ title, the duo of McLaren made up of Oscar Piastri, championship leader, and Lando Norris This weekend in Austin marks the beginning of a possible comeback for the Max Verstappen’s Red Bull.
With six rounds left in the world championship, McLaren’s title contenders are separated by just 22 points, while the four-time champion is 63 points off the lead, although enjoying his recent performance after beating the British team’s two cars in the last three races.
Verstappen already reduced the deficit with Piastri from 104 points to 41 at the beginning of September, turning an almost lost cause into an exciting fight for the Dutchman to win his fifth title.
If he does it, it would be a record points comeback.
Former champion Jacques Villeneuve, who won the title in 1997, believes that Mad Max is destined to succeed and that it will be his “best world championship.”
“The two McLaren drivers are suffering too much from the pressure and need to wake up,” he told the Italian newspaper La Gazzetta dello Sport.
This weekend’s United States Grand Prix, at the Circuit of the Americas, promises to be a very tense scene.
The two McLaren drivers will try to defend themselves with cars that have not been updated in recent weeks against the powerful and renewed Red Bull car.
Furthermore, the fact that this weekend has a sprint race, the first of the three remaining this year, only increases the nervousness.
Verstappen has scored four consecutive podiums and has won three of the last four races in Austin. He was only left out last year when Ferrari achieved a one-two finish and settled for a sprint victory.
McLaren wants to go for more
McLaren, whose initial performance has fallen, has the incentive – not as consolation – of being the owner of the constructors’ crown.
“Our strategy does not change because we have won the constructors’ championship,” said team boss Zak Brown. “We approach this race the same way as all the others.”
Norris took pole last year and finished fourth. He knows that he must surpass Piastri and Verstappen, as much as possible, to maintain his position.
Piastri, the 24-year-old Australian driver, has not finished on the podium in three races and his best result in Austin was fifth place last year.
The tension at McLaren is likely to be repeated at Ferrari after tense days reported in the media, suggesting the team is in chaos and pointing to former Red Bull boss Christian Horner as a possible successor to hard-pressed team boss Frédéric Vasseur.
Without a single victory this year, the Scuderia, and particularly seven-time champion Lewis Hamilton, urgently need a result to shake off the salt.
The Briton completes 18 races without getting on the podium, although he returns to his favorite circuit, where he has already been crowned five times.
“We know that we have not made the most of our team’s potential in recent races,” Vasseur declared, dismissing rumors of internal conflicts. “The team is united and totally determined to reverse the situation.”
Mercedes will also look to repeat George Russell’s success in Singapore, amid confirmation that it will keep its line-up unchanged for next year, with young Italian Kimi Antonelli and the Briton driving the Silver Arrows cars.
