Lando Norris shipped seven points in his world championship fight as an unflappable Oscar Piastri won the Spanish Grand Prix from pole – as Max Verstappen lost his control with an extraordinary lunge on George Russell late in the race.
As for Norris, it was a case of back to earth with a bump a week after his morale-boosting triumph on Monaco’s twisty streets. An error-dented qualifying session condemned the Briton to start from second on the grid, and his best obvious chance of seizing the lead presented itself on the long drag into the first corner.
But Norris was away slowly, at least relative to Piastri’s smart getaway. He even slipped a place to Verstappen, the Red Bull man pressing his claims strongly as usual.
Norris was able to pass Verstappen on lap 13, his McLaren’s superior pace too much for the Red Bull. A breeze into second, where he finished.
Piastri, therefore, leads Norris by 10 points after nine rounds.
So the damage to Norris was contained but the outcome was the opposite of the ideal he required to maintain momentum established seven days before.
Oscar Piastri (pictured) has claimed his tenth victory of the Formula One season, fending off his team-mate Lando Norris from pole position
Norris (left) shipped seven points in his world championship fight as an unflappable Piastri walked away with 25 points
Piastri (centre) now leads Norris (left) by 10 points after nine rounds, following his brilliant start to the season
Norris has never won two races back-to-back during a season, a curious anomaly in such a fast car.
His language coming into the weekend betrayed a lack of conviction. For example, he said that he did not necessarily need pole but just a strong qualifying performance.
There is no such thing in a McLaren of such unmatched pace – it is pole or failure, a view underlined by the result of the race.
Imagine Lewis Hamilton making such a meek comment at the height of his brilliance. He would have rather gouged his eyes out than have ceded pole to Fernando Alonso in 2007 at McLaren (or anyone else at Mercedes).
Norris’s soul-searching led Nico Rosberg, the 2016 champion to whom Hamilton lost out in a psychological thriller, to say: ‘I don’t know if Lando has a mental coach. Does he work with a psychologist or not? He definitely should because there’s so much value in that.
‘I worked with one, just to help us understand the best possible approach. I did two hours every two days leading up to the season. It was more difficult than the physical training. It was insanely difficult and extremely valuable.’
As for Hamilton, he suffered the indignity of being told to allow Ferrario team-mate Charles Leclerc through just 10 laps into the 66.
This instruction has come his way on the two occasions he has outqualified Leclerc, here and in China. He finished sixth, passed by Stake’s Nico Hulkenberg, to Leclerc’s far more competitive third, with Mercedes’s Mr Reliable Russell fourth.
Charles Leclerc (pictured) claimed his third podium finish of the 2025 season on Sunday in Barcelona
Max Verstappen (pictured) was handed a 10-second penalty after he clashed with George Russell during the race
![Norris (pictured) admitted: 'I just didn’t have the pace to match him [Piastri]. It was a good, fun race, to finish one-two is even better'](https://www.americanpolibeat.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/06/1748792357_469_Oscar-Piastri-sees-off-McLaren-team-mate-Lando-Norris-to-claim.jpg)
Norris (pictured) admitted: ‘I just didn’t have the pace to match him [Piastri]. It was a good, fun race, to finish one-two is even better’
After the race, Piastri told Sky Sports that it has been a ‘great year already for McLaren’ and thanked the crowd for cheering him on
A safety car came out 11 laps from the end after Kimi Antonelli’s Mercedes engine gave up on him and he slid across the gravel at Turn 10.
The leaders peeled into the pits to be reshod. On the restart, Verstappen wobbled off on the kerb while running third, was passed by Leclerc and Russell.
The Dutchman ran off track and was told to hand his place back to Russell.
He screamed defiance, before finally appearing to move aside, but then turned into Russell. He was handed a 10-second penalty that plunged him back to finish 10th.
