Max Verstappen’s path to a fifth consecutive Drivers’ Championship title is a cloudy one. The Dutchman fought the second half of the 2024 campaign with the third-fastest car, and he had plenty more rivals to worry about in 2025.
None, however, are likely to be as daunting as the returning Lando Norris.
The Brit enjoyed a breakthrough year last time around, claiming his first Grand Prix victory in Miami and adding a further three before the end of the season.
The latest of those four was a constructors’ title-winning triumph and was executed with ice-cold precision.
McLaren’s first Constructors’ Championship title since 1998 was a fitting reward for Norris, but the Brit was left frustrated with his own failure to reel in Verstappen in the Drivers’ Championship.
However, with the slate wiped clean, the 25-year-old has a golden chance to etch his name into the history books in 2025.
He’ll do so with a fresh attitude, too. “I need to get my elbows out, and I need to show him that I’m not going to willingly give him any positions, but I also have to be a smart driver,” Norris said at the launch of the MCL39.
“You have to be a smart driver to go up against Max – we saw it last year.”
Norris’ words will ring alarm bells for Verstappen, despite the Dutchman insisting that he is feeling “relaxed” as he looks to defend his crown and match Michael Schumacher’s record of five successive driver titles.
Verstappen now finds himself in a difficult position. In 2024, Norris gave the Dutchman plenty of room, and his aggressive defending in Austria, Mexico and Texas worked in his favour.
Such do-or-die moves were worth the calculated risk, given his advantage in the standings, which was opened up during Red Bull’s dominant spell in the first third of the campaign.
However, this time around, it is McLaren who are the early favourites, and with Oscar Piastri, Charles Leclerc and Lewis Hamilton all keeping their eyes on the title too, any miscalculated moves on Verstappen’s part could give him a mountain to climb early in the year.
Then there is the matter of penalty points. Verstappen currently has eight to his name - accumulate four more and he’ll serve a one-race ban.
Worse still, the FIA stewards have clamped down on avoidable contact and issued several 10-second time penalties in Abu Dhabi, some harsh and some warranted.
All of this comes together to make the remit crystal clear for the reigning champion: he must battle Norris with flawless precision, and he must do so without taking unnecessary risks.
Otherwise, Verstappen’s fight for a fifth Drivers’ Championship crown may be over before the summer break.
