Can McLaren knock Verstappen off the perch?

Verstappen's dominance appear to be shifting track this season with the emergence of McLaren and their two red-hot drivers — Oscar Piastri and Lando Norris.

Ever since Max Verstappen won his maiden Formula One world championship title in 2021 following a thrilling battle with Lewis Hamilton, the Dutchman has become the dominant force in the sport this decade. With racing deeply embedded in his DNA — his father Jos competed in F1 for nine seasons and mother Sophie Kumpen was a former racing driver and kart racer — Red Bull’s Verstappen has gone on to rake up four consecutive world titles.

Blessed with a car that could do no wrong and possessing a bloody-minded, ruthless attitude where even a second-place finish felt like a defeat, the 27-year-old was simply in a league of his own during his second and third world championship triumphs. He kept stacking up one win after another, records kept tumbling while rivals wondered what could be done to dethrone a driver. If he started on pole, a win was guaranteed. Even if he fumbled during qualifying and started in the middle of the pack, he would find a way to take the chequered flag. Rain, sunshine and car crashes, didn’t matter to him. In 2022, he won a mind-boggling 15 races. Next season, he was untouchable, winning an eye-popping 19 races. 

And when he won seven out of the opening ten races last year, it seemed like Verstappen was on course for another season of stroll. But suddenly his car started acting funny and, coincidentally, his form began to take a rapid nosedive. It’s exactly what the rest of the paddock were hoping for as Verstappen went through a stretch of ten races without a win. For once his dominance was questioned, but champions always find a way through and Verstappen hit back with a performance for the ages at a rain-soaked Brazilian GP. It lit his fuse again and he secured his fourth consecutive world championship under the dazzling lights of the Las Vegas circuit very next race. 

While such dominance is great for the individual and the team concerned, it may not necessarily make for interesting viewing. Like during Sebastian Vettel’s Red Bull era or Lewis Hamilton’s time in the immediacy where he won six world championships in seven years from 2014-2020 — his Mercedes team-mate Nico Rosberg won the world title in 2016 — most races were predictable in nature and tuning in was only to see how big a win they could post.

Things, though, appear to be shifting track this season with the emergence of McLaren and their two red-hot drivers — Oscar Piastri and Lando Norris. The duo have been on the podium together in seven out of the nine races completed so far and, given their incredible performances and the reliability of their respective cars, it looks like the monopoly of Verstappen-Red Bull could finally be questioned.

The 24-year-old Piastri, competing in his sophomore season, has elevated his game to a whole new level to lead the driver standings narrowly with 186 points. The season started on a sober note when the Australian, after starting on the front row at his home grand prix in Melbourne with pole winner Lorris, went toe-to-toe with his team-mate before fumbling in the race towards the end to sign off ninth. Since that mistake, though, Piastri has been putting on ‘Oscar’-worthy shows! He topped the podium in China in the very next race and finished first at Bahrain, Saudi Arabia, Miami, and Spain — all in dominating fashion. 

Called the “Smooth Operator 2.0” by some fans and pundits for his cool and calm driving style, Piastri has shown multiple times this season that he really means business this season. Be it overtaking Verstappen at the Emilia-Romagna Grand Prix in Imola or showing the gumption to bounce back from the Melbourne heartbreak in front of his home fans or producing a strategic masterclass in Spain a week ago, Piastri has barely put a foot wrong in what he feels could be a career-defining season for him. The mistakes he committed in his debut last year have totally gone with the youngster laying strong emphasis on getting the perfect job done during Saturday’s qualifying, something which weighed him down. He’s quickly realised front row starts on race day is a strong pass to finish on the podium, and he’s been concentration personified both on Saturdays and Sundays.

Britain’s Norris, just a year older than Piastri and as determined as the Australian, is second in the championship on 176 points. He’s had just two wins but podium finishes in all but one race have shown his incredible consistency. Sometimes, more than winning, constant podium finishes could play a significant role at the end and Norris knows it. It’s just about a little more than one-third of the season and judging by Norris’ passion and hunger, the stage is set for a cracking rivalry with his own colleague considering both have the same car and are backed equally by their team. Both drivers have displayed remarkable maturity with their race and tire management hailed by experts.

McLaren too deserves plenty of credit for building a great car that has revelled in all conditions. It’s aerodynamically superior to all other cars in the paddock; the trackside engineers have been spot-on in making the right tyre calls based on conditions, while the overall leadership of team principal Andrea Stella, where both the drivers are treated equally, has turned into a potent force. Last season itself, especially from the second half onwards, McLaren started to rise as a force and eventually won the Constructors Championship, snapping Red Bull’s two-year stint at the top.

McLaren have also been helped by their return to Mercedes for engines from the 2021 season onwards. The second-oldest team after Ferrari, McLaren have struck the sweet spot with Mercedes, who have been the dominant force from the Hamilton era until Verstappen arrived at Red Bull. They and their drivers have made a promising start, and they’ll be hoping to finally throw Verstappen off the perch. However, mind you, Verstappen is at his most dangerous when he’s pushed to a corner.