F1’s three-way title race resumes this weekend in Brazil, with another McLaren driver at the top of the standings for the first time in more than six months.
And as the 2025 season enters its decisive final five weeks, with Red Bull’s Max Verstappen still set to take on the McLaren duo of Lando Norris and Oscar Piastri, we take a look at some of the latest big questions in the championship race as tensions rise…
How is the situation going for Brazil?
After a 20-race weekend, with four races remaining, the gap at the top of the Drivers’ Championship is as tight and close as it has been all season.
Norris’ solo victory in Mexico saw him replace Piastri at the top of the standings for the first time since April, but he remains extremely close to his McLaren teammate at the summit, with just one point.
The fear of Verstappen’s title return still looms over the McLaren duo.
From a 104-point lead after the Dutch Grand Prix at the end of August, four-time reigning champions Red Bull have narrowed the gap to 36 points thanks to gains in each of the past five race weekends. This is the smallest gap between Verstappen and the leader since May’s Monaco Grand Prix.
So who is your favorite right now?
The bookmaker’s pre-season favorites are back as favorites heading to Brazil.
Norris’ restored position in the points standings is reflected in the latest odds, with the Briton at the top of the betting ahead of Piastri and Verstappen, but there is little left to choose between the three.
How many points do you have left?
Drivers can earn up to 116 points in the final four events of the season (Grand Prix weekends in São Paulo, Las Vegas, Qatar and Abu Dhabi).
This brings the total to 100 in Sunday’s four main races (25 for each race win) and 16 for the final two sprints of the season (eight for sprint wins) this Saturday in Brazil and then in Qatar on November 29th.
Does Piastri have the answer to Norris’ rapid rise?
Perhaps the biggest question regarding the championship battle heading into Sao Paulo is whether Piastri will be able to react immediately after seeing his 189-day run at the top of the drivers’ championship ended by the dominant Norris in Mexico City.
Piastri is without a win in five races and, perhaps more worryingly for the Australian, four races without even a podium finish. Since winning the Dutch Grand Prix on August 31, he had not finished ahead of Norris or Verstappen and appeared to have extended a commanding 34-point title lead.
Norris’ unusually large lack of pace in the past two races – 0.283 seconds in qualifying in Austin and 0.588 seconds in Mexico – is something the Australian wants to address quickly.
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Piastri insists he has no intention of ‘reinventing’ himself
McLaren team principal Andrea Stella said the low grip and slippery nature of the Circuit of the Americas and Autodromo Hermanos Rodríguez required a driving style that was “not necessarily the way Oscar naturally feels he was producing lap times”, and the team was working together to add, in Piastri’s words, “some tools to the toolbox” to get the most out of the MCL39 in such conditions.
The challenge at Sao Paulo’s Interlagos circuit will be different than before, which should help Piastri return to his best form, but drivers will also need plenty of confidence in their car’s handling, as the track is bumpy and there is likely to be at least some rain.
Piastri certainly bounced back from his form in the dry conditions at the start of the weekend in Brazil last year, beating Norris to the pole sprint and then overtaking his title-chasing teammate to take Saturday’s victory.
Will Brazil prove whether Verstappen is really in the fight?
After a difficult few days for Red Bull, the question of whether Verstappen’s 15 points to fight for third place in Mexico is a “good” 15 points to claim the external championship will probably be answered this weekend.
The RB21 is certainly not as competitive at altitude as it was at Austin last week, where Verstappen comfortably won, and the team and driver will be hoping to get back into the race for victory a year later at Interlagos, where they took a stunning wet-weather victory from 17th on the grid.
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Watch Max Verstappen’s remarkable opening lap at the 2024 Sao Paulo Grand Prix
Championship leader Piastri’s struggles last time before the race saw Verstappen close to the top of the standings again, but this time he picked up just four points and the Dutchman admitted it wasn’t enough.
“As I said before the weekend, everything has to go perfectly to win,” said the four-time world champion. “And this weekend didn’t go perfectly. That’s your answer. I think it’s going to be tough, but let’s see what we can do on other tracks.”
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After struggling in the first half of the season, Verstappen has significantly closed the gap between Norris and Piastri.
Verstappen needs to average nine points more than both McLaren drivers in each of the remaining four race weekends to become champion for a fifth time. This is one point less than the difference between first and third place in a Grand Prix, so realistically it means he has to get back to winning ways and hope that Ferrari and Mercedes can secure a driver between him and McLaren.
That’s certainly a difficult question.
With extra points available for the sprint in Sao Paulo, Verstappen knows he needs a weekend like this to be “perfect” if he is to have a real shot at the title in the final month of the season.
Is there a driver/car that has a clear advantage on the final course?
Trying to predict with special confidence which cars or which drivers the remaining tracks of the calendar are likely to favor is fraught with difficulties even for the protagonist himself.
Piastri said in Mexico: “For me, it’s hard to predict who will be strong where. If anything, I think it’s more about who can get the most out of their car every weekend than who’s car is better suited for different uses.”
But is there much that can be gleaned from recent precedents and common car characteristics?
There is no doubt that the hilly Interlagos circuit in Sao Paulo is a circuit where McLaren is hoping for a good result. Last year, they dominated in the dry, but Verstappen turned the tide in the wet race and almost secured his fourth consecutive drivers’ title.
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Martin Brundle talks about F1 championship contenders
Rain is expected to be a factor once again this year, but the nature of the sprint weekend with only one practice session means that momentum early in the weekend will be important.
Las Vegas has proven to be a bogey track on the two-year calendar for McLaren, with the team yet to qualify or finish higher than sixth on the strip circuit. Verstappen did a little better last year (5th place), a year after winning the first race, but Mercedes still had the upper hand in cool conditions at night.
Regarding McLaren’s chances, Stella said: “Las Vegas, if anything, proved to be a challenge for McLaren as a whole. Last year we weren’t competitive. We needed to learn something during the race. If anything, we needed to make some changes to see if we could stop the graining.”
“This year’s tires are a lot less grainy than last year, so it might be a slightly different Las Vegas from that perspective. It’s going to be interesting. I think it’s fine for Lando and Oscar in terms of track layout for the next four races.”
If Las Vegas remains one of McLaren’s more challenging circuits, Qatar and Abu Dhabi should further demonstrate the MCL39’s strengths, but Red Bull will also feel reason for optimism.
Qatar was the only dry race Verstappen won in the final five months of 2024, while Norris won in Abu Dhabi last year, ending Verstappen’s four-game winning streak at this track.
Will he head to the final race in Abu Dhabi?
With just one point at the top of the table, what we do know for sure is that the battle will continue, at least until the first leg of the season-ending triple header, and almost certainly beyond.
Theoretically, the earliest decision to be made at the moment is the Las Vegas Grand Prix on November 23rd, but this is extremely unlikely given that for Norris to have an absolute lead of 59 points, Piastri and Verstappen will not score at all and he would need to get the maximum points (58 points) from Brazil and Las Vegas.
The title fight is therefore all but guaranteed to continue until the season’s penultimate round and final sprint event in Qatar, which takes place from November 28 to 30.
The driver who finishes Lusail weekend in first place by at least 26 points (or 25 points on countback if he is guaranteed to finish the season with the most wins) will be crowned champion.
If it’s less than that, the race for the title will be decided in Abu Dhabi on December 7, which hasn’t happened since the ignominious showdown between Verstappen and Lewis Hamilton in Abu Dhabi in 2021.
F1’s thrilling title race continues in Brazil, with the São Paulo Grand Prix sprint weekend being broadcast live on Sky Sports F1 from this Friday. Stream Sky Sports now – cancel anytime with no contract
