McLaren drivers Lando Norris and Oscar Piastri are adamant that Ferrari is closer to their team in 2025 than the result suggested in Formula 1‘s Japanese Grand Prix.
The Woking-based squad propped up as the highest-scoring side for the third successive weekend at Suzuka, despite missing out on the race win to Max Verstappen.
Less than three seconds separated the top three, with Charles Leclerc admitting that Ferrari doesn’t have the pace to rival those ahead as he lagged 13 seconds back.
However, Norris has seemed to disagree with Leclerc’s view on Ferrari’s competitiveness as he argued the Monegasque “wasn’t that much slower” in the second stint.
But while he suspects it will be the McLaren drivers against Verstappen for the title, Norris isn’t discounting Ferrari getting involved in the lead battle at certain rounds.
“I still think at times we’re going to see some more competition from the guys behind,” Norris told media including Motorsport Week.
“Charles was not that much slower. There was a bigger gap, but I think his second stint on the Hards was just as quick as mine. I didn’t think we dropped him at all.
“So other cars are quick. I think we pushed a lot in the beginning, and it was a race where you just flat out from the off. It was a quick race.”
Norris claims top three the most consistent
Norris has claimed that both he and Piastri, along with Verstappen, have been the three drivers who have maximised the package at their disposal more than the rest.
“I think we’re the three who are the most consistent at the minute and putting in the times in quali and putting the good races in,” he continued.
“But George [Russell] has been quick this weekend. I don’t know, maybe again they struggled a bit more in Q3 for whatever reason and then therefore in the race.
“But I’m sure like if you put a George starting on pole today, I think he probably still would have won the race.
“So I think anytime someone does that bit of a better job on Saturday for qualifying, they can have those opportunities come their way.
“But at the minute, I think McLaren, Red Bull, and probably between us three, we’re doing a better job than the rest.”
Piastri highlights untapped Ferrari potential
Piastri agreed with his team-mate’s assessment, citing that Leclerc’s strong race pace in China with damage was another example that Ferrari has untapped promise.
“As Lando said, Mercedes looked very threatening at times this weekend,” the Australian echoed.
“And I think Ferrari – I think people forget that Charles’s race in China he did with, essentially, half a front wing.
“So I think if anyone else had tried to do the race he did in China, they would have had to box pretty quickly.
“So I think we have a small advantage, but I think this weekend has really shown that any small mistake and there’s a lot of competition there to capitalise.”
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