It's 1986 all over again. Oscar Piastri handed Lando Norris a
gilt-edged opportunity to do his F1 drivers' championship lead
serious damage at the Azerbaijan Grand Prix. He didn't take it. Max
Verstappen did – and the Dutchman now looks poised to teach the
McLaren drivers a valuable lesson. To borrow from Sir Francis
Bacon, knowledge is power . And the four-time drivers' champion has
done this before. The fact that neither McLaren driver has started
to show in Baku. The now-67-time grand prix winner has only a slim
chance at a fifth consecutive title, but it is a chance, and if
Norris isn't going to take advantage of errors from the other side
of the McLaren garage, Verstappen most certainly will. McLaren team
principal Andrea Stella insists the Red Bull driver is a
championship contender, and until the maths says he isn't, it is
hard to argue against it. "A firm YES," the Italian responded when
asked if Verstappen is still a factor in the title fight after he
planted his RB21 on pole in Baku. "Can you write it in capitals?
Because it was quoted in capitals." After the Dutch Grand Prix,
Verstappen found himself 104 points adrift of Piastri. In the two
subsequent rounds, he's slashed that seemingly insurmountable
margin by 35 points. One third down, two to go. Norris is closer,
much closer, but you could forgive the Australian for being more
wary of the external threat – especially after what transpired in
Azerbaijan. If – and it is a big if – Verstappen does somehow
succeed in taking the crown against the dominant McLarens… it
will not be the hand of God, but the hand of greatness. Dropped
ball and open goal There are two main silver linings to Piastri's
calamitous weekend. First, he got three mistakes out of his system
in one fell swoop, and by qualifying a lowly ninth, his errors on
the Sunday felt less devastating. Second, even though his team-mate
dropped the ball and left the goal wide open, Norris missed. The
six points the Briton procured were fewer than the number he would
have eaten into Piastri's deficit by if he had led home a McLaren
one-two. After the grand prix, Stella argued that even champions
have a bad weekend once in a while. True. However, that discounts
the timing of the 24-year-old's nightmare event. The context of it
matters and might, just might, the pressure be getting to Piastri?
You would expect him to respond, even emphatically, in Singapore.
He is ice-cold, and whilst he melted in the heat of the Land of
Fire , you can count the mistakes he has made this season on one
hand. However, the Marina Bay Circuit is a happy hunting ground for
his team-mate, who will be formidable there. Plus, if the tension
is starting to weigh heavily on him, there will be more errors to
come. As for Norris, the majority of the damage was done on
Saturday. He and the team fumbled qualifying. He should have been
no lower than third on the grid – and realistically on the front
row – but he was sent out too early and failed to execute. There
was less the 25-year-old could have done, and Stella was adamant
that McLaren did not provide him with a good enough car. Yes, but
two critical moments cost him crucial points. First, Norris was
asleep at the safety car restart. He fell behind Charles Leclerc
and lost precious time behind the Ferrari when he could have been
attacking slower cars ahead. Secondly, another poor pit stop from
the papaya team prevented him from attacking Yuki Tsunoda and Liam
Lawson in the closing stages. He started where he finished in
seventh, but it really should have been fifth, and the 25-point
deficit ought to be 21. Ultimately, not capitalising on Piastri's
messy weekend may well prove decisive come Abu Dhabi. The
Australian was overdue for a retirement, and this might have been
it. Be careful what you wish for At Monza, Norris highlighted how
it could be advantageous to have another driver in the mix to help
take points from Piastri in the title fight. "It would certainly
make my life easier if there were just some more drivers in between
every now and then," he said. "The thing is, we're so dominant as a
team that it almost makes my life harder…" Well, be careful what
you wish for, because it is fast becoming apparent that the driver
coming between the McLarens is: a) not just any driver; and b),
more than capable of supplanting them both. The floor update Red
Bull delivered to Verstappen’s RB21 in Italy, and other recent
changes the team has made under the leadership of Laurent Mekies,
has vaulted the 27-year-old back to grand prix-winning ways. That
upgrade quickly proved to have a wider working window than first
expected. The trip to Singapore will be a key litmus test for how
competitive Verstappen can be over the final seven rounds; he’s
never won there, and Red Bull has struggled there in years past,
but what difference will the steps taken by the six-time
constructors’ champions make? Then comes the Austin-Mexico City
swing and a return to medium speed. Mekies pointed out after Baku
that McLaren "killed" the Milton Keynes team at Zandvoort, but
Stella was quick to highlight how strong the RB21 was in such
corners at Monza after the update. In short, the next three rounds
will be fundamental to establishing whether Verstappen will have
the tools at his disposal to steal the championship from Norris and
Piastri. If he has been graced with the machinery he needs, that is
where his knowledge of prevailing in a title battle – and
undeniable ability to maximise results and get the most from every
opportunity afforded him – is power. Previously in The Scoop 1986
all over again In '86, Nelson Piquet and Nigel Mansell – vying for
title glory in the superior Williams – ended up leaving the back
door open for Alain Prost to sneak in. The diminutive Frenchman
nicked the crown from under their noses. Fast forward nearly four
decades, could history be repeating itself? I dismissed the notion
of cosmic retribution in this column a few weeks ago, but could
this be the universe correcting itself by evening the score at
McLaren? Now just 69 points back from Piastri in the standings, and
despite the MCL39 being the class of the field, the menace of the
Red Bull driver is looming large. As convenient as some sort of
divine intervention would be for the Woking-based squad and its
drivers to explain away what could only be classified as a
catastrophic implosion, if it somehow came to pass, it would do
Verstappen an almighty disservice. If – and it is a big if –
Verstappen does somehow succeed in taking the crown against the
dominant McLarens, it will have been thoroughly earned. It will be
the best of his five titles, his ultimate triumph – so far. Every
ounce of praise and recognition for that achievement will be
merited. It will not be the hand of God, but the hand of greatness.
gilt-edged opportunity to do his F1 drivers' championship lead
serious damage at the Azerbaijan Grand Prix. He didn't take it. Max
Verstappen did – and the Dutchman now looks poised to teach the
McLaren drivers a valuable lesson. To borrow from Sir Francis
Bacon, knowledge is power . And the four-time drivers' champion has
done this before. The fact that neither McLaren driver has started
to show in Baku. The now-67-time grand prix winner has only a slim
chance at a fifth consecutive title, but it is a chance, and if
Norris isn't going to take advantage of errors from the other side
of the McLaren garage, Verstappen most certainly will. McLaren team
principal Andrea Stella insists the Red Bull driver is a
championship contender, and until the maths says he isn't, it is
hard to argue against it. "A firm YES," the Italian responded when
asked if Verstappen is still a factor in the title fight after he
planted his RB21 on pole in Baku. "Can you write it in capitals?
Because it was quoted in capitals." After the Dutch Grand Prix,
Verstappen found himself 104 points adrift of Piastri. In the two
subsequent rounds, he's slashed that seemingly insurmountable
margin by 35 points. One third down, two to go. Norris is closer,
much closer, but you could forgive the Australian for being more
wary of the external threat – especially after what transpired in
Azerbaijan. If – and it is a big if – Verstappen does somehow
succeed in taking the crown against the dominant McLarens… it
will not be the hand of God, but the hand of greatness. Dropped
ball and open goal There are two main silver linings to Piastri's
calamitous weekend. First, he got three mistakes out of his system
in one fell swoop, and by qualifying a lowly ninth, his errors on
the Sunday felt less devastating. Second, even though his team-mate
dropped the ball and left the goal wide open, Norris missed. The
six points the Briton procured were fewer than the number he would
have eaten into Piastri's deficit by if he had led home a McLaren
one-two. After the grand prix, Stella argued that even champions
have a bad weekend once in a while. True. However, that discounts
the timing of the 24-year-old's nightmare event. The context of it
matters and might, just might, the pressure be getting to Piastri?
You would expect him to respond, even emphatically, in Singapore.
He is ice-cold, and whilst he melted in the heat of the Land of
Fire , you can count the mistakes he has made this season on one
hand. However, the Marina Bay Circuit is a happy hunting ground for
his team-mate, who will be formidable there. Plus, if the tension
is starting to weigh heavily on him, there will be more errors to
come. As for Norris, the majority of the damage was done on
Saturday. He and the team fumbled qualifying. He should have been
no lower than third on the grid – and realistically on the front
row – but he was sent out too early and failed to execute. There
was less the 25-year-old could have done, and Stella was adamant
that McLaren did not provide him with a good enough car. Yes, but
two critical moments cost him crucial points. First, Norris was
asleep at the safety car restart. He fell behind Charles Leclerc
and lost precious time behind the Ferrari when he could have been
attacking slower cars ahead. Secondly, another poor pit stop from
the papaya team prevented him from attacking Yuki Tsunoda and Liam
Lawson in the closing stages. He started where he finished in
seventh, but it really should have been fifth, and the 25-point
deficit ought to be 21. Ultimately, not capitalising on Piastri's
messy weekend may well prove decisive come Abu Dhabi. The
Australian was overdue for a retirement, and this might have been
it. Be careful what you wish for At Monza, Norris highlighted how
it could be advantageous to have another driver in the mix to help
take points from Piastri in the title fight. "It would certainly
make my life easier if there were just some more drivers in between
every now and then," he said. "The thing is, we're so dominant as a
team that it almost makes my life harder…" Well, be careful what
you wish for, because it is fast becoming apparent that the driver
coming between the McLarens is: a) not just any driver; and b),
more than capable of supplanting them both. The floor update Red
Bull delivered to Verstappen’s RB21 in Italy, and other recent
changes the team has made under the leadership of Laurent Mekies,
has vaulted the 27-year-old back to grand prix-winning ways. That
upgrade quickly proved to have a wider working window than first
expected. The trip to Singapore will be a key litmus test for how
competitive Verstappen can be over the final seven rounds; he’s
never won there, and Red Bull has struggled there in years past,
but what difference will the steps taken by the six-time
constructors’ champions make? Then comes the Austin-Mexico City
swing and a return to medium speed. Mekies pointed out after Baku
that McLaren "killed" the Milton Keynes team at Zandvoort, but
Stella was quick to highlight how strong the RB21 was in such
corners at Monza after the update. In short, the next three rounds
will be fundamental to establishing whether Verstappen will have
the tools at his disposal to steal the championship from Norris and
Piastri. If he has been graced with the machinery he needs, that is
where his knowledge of prevailing in a title battle – and
undeniable ability to maximise results and get the most from every
opportunity afforded him – is power. Previously in The Scoop 1986
all over again In '86, Nelson Piquet and Nigel Mansell – vying for
title glory in the superior Williams – ended up leaving the back
door open for Alain Prost to sneak in. The diminutive Frenchman
nicked the crown from under their noses. Fast forward nearly four
decades, could history be repeating itself? I dismissed the notion
of cosmic retribution in this column a few weeks ago, but could
this be the universe correcting itself by evening the score at
McLaren? Now just 69 points back from Piastri in the standings, and
despite the MCL39 being the class of the field, the menace of the
Red Bull driver is looming large. As convenient as some sort of
divine intervention would be for the Woking-based squad and its
drivers to explain away what could only be classified as a
catastrophic implosion, if it somehow came to pass, it would do
Verstappen an almighty disservice. If – and it is a big if –
Verstappen does somehow succeed in taking the crown against the
dominant McLarens, it will have been thoroughly earned. It will be
the best of his five titles, his ultimate triumph – so far. Every
ounce of praise and recognition for that achievement will be
merited. It will not be the hand of God, but the hand of greatness.
The post Is Max Verstappen about to teach Oscar Piastri and Lando Norris a valuable lesson? appeared first on RacingNews365.