Oscar Piastri has denied that his title fight in Formula 1 with McLaren team-mate Lando Norris has similarities to manager Mark Webber’s duel with Sebastian Vettel.
McLaren’s dominance in 2025 – which has produced nine victories in 12 races – has seen the Drivers’ Championship be touted as a contest between the McLaren duo.
Piastri holds the upper hand despite Norris reducing his gap with consecutive victories in Austria and Britain, with eight points separating the two heading to Belgium.
The Australian’s support network comprises ex-F1 driver Webber, who had a prolonged career in the series that peaked with third place in a close 2010 championship.
Like Piastri, Webber was also in the running up against a team-mate in Vettel, a partnership which imploded when the two Red Bulls crashed in the Turkish Grand Prix.
McLaren had anticipated an identical incident occurring between the side’s drivers, and the moment materialised in Canada last month when Norris drove into Piastri.
But when asked whether he had leaned on Webber’s own previous experience to process the collision in Montreal, Piastri detailed dissimilarities between the rivalries.
“I think the situation is very different,” Piastri told media including Motorsport Week.
“I think Lando and I are very different people to Mark and Seb. I think the situation within the team, the situation in their careers, was also different.
“Also, the incident in Canada didn’t warrant any big discussions or big decisions.
“It was a misjudgement from Lando that he admitted to and apologised for immediately. I don’t think it needed anything else.
“We knew going into this year that it was probably going to be a close fight between Lando and I with a championship at stake.
“So it’s no surprise to anyone that we’re kind of in this scenario now.
“Ultimately, just trying to make yourself as fast as possible and do the right things – that’s all you can do.”
How McLaren is managing internal rivalry
Piastri has repeated that he and Norris share a mutual desire to ensure that the developing championship battle doesn’t open up an irreparable divide within McLaren.
“I’ve said it multiple times, but Lando and I don’t just want one opportunity this year to win a championship,” he added. “We want this to go on for as long as we’re in Formula 1.
“The headline a few weeks ago was: ‘It’s not wise to fight for a championship or win a championship and bring the house down with it.’
“I think that’s still very much at the forefront of our minds, and we want this success for years to come. Having the team united is a very simple way of doing that.”
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