Formula One World Championship 2025: Who will win?

After one of the most chaotic races of the season, the championship between McLaren drivers Oscar Piastri and Lando Norris currently stands with a 34-point gap between them. The main debate at the moment: Will it be Landos's championship or Oscar's championship? 

(Image credits to total-motorsport.com)

Team success

Both of the drivers at McLaren have had a highly successful start to the season. Coming into the 2025 season, the team was (and still is) the top constructor after winning the title in Abu Dhabi last season. The team has continued their dominance in 2025, both in the constructors' and drivers' championships. Only 34 points separate drivers Oscar Piastri and Lando Norris, which makes us wonder which driver will win. 

Lando's race story

Both drivers have shown their talent to win a race and defend on track since the start of the 2024 season. After securing 4 wins in the 2024 season, one of which being a maiden win and one securing McLaren the championship, Lando Norris proved he had what it takes to win a championship. After winning the season finale, he stated on the radio ‘Next year will be my year,’ showing his newfound maturity as a driver. Coming into the season, he demonstrated this mentality numerous times, by winning the season opener and even continuously fighting to lead this season's Drivers Championship once again. Following his mistake in Canada, where he crashed his car trying to overtake his teammate, Norris proceeded to win ¾ races that followed, including his home race at Silverstone. Going into the break, the points gap between both McLaren drivers was only 9 points, with a notable one-stop strategy in Hungary helping Lando gain points over Oscar. However, going into the Dutch Grand Prix, his luck took a turn for the worse as 60 laps into the race, Lando had to retire due to engine issues, meaning that with Oscar's win, the championship now stands at 34 points between the duo. Many fans have stated that the championship is out of Lando's reach now, but if Oscar finishes out of the points or DNFs in any of the remaining races, there's a chance the championship will return to Lando. 

Oscars success

After a disappointing rookie season with McLaren's unpredictable car, Oscar bounced back in the 2024 season, securing 2 wins and demonstrating the same championship-winning mentality that won him the F2 championship years prior. Going into the 2025 season, Oscar showed his mental strength after going from 2nd to last at his home race to bringing his car back into the points. Oscar then proceeded to secure his first Grand Prix pole at the next race in China and won, showing his resilience and strength to bounce back from error. Following this, Oscar has proceeded to win 7 Grand Prixs this season and currently leads the championship with 309 points. Considering Oscar's recent success and his history of making limited mistakes, it seems likely that Oscar will clinch the title in the 2025 season and become a first-time world champion. 

McLaren's responsibility

Even during the title fight between their two drivers this year, McLaren have still made it clear that they view each driver as a number one driver. The team have allowed the drivers the race each other freely, only asking them not to race erratically and cause harm to one another. Despite the fact that Oscar is the championship leader, these rules have meant that Lando is free to overtake Oscar, whether it be a physical overtake on track or by using a different strategy. With only 9 races to go until the end of the season, many fans believe that Oscar should start being prioritised, as it seems likely that the championship will land in his favour.

Championship competition

While it seems highly unlikely that a racer from a constructor other than McLaren will win the championship, a competition for second and third between Lando and Max Verstappen could also come about. Ahead of Monza, third place driver Max Verstappen, and fourth-place driver George Russell have a 21 point gap to eachother. This means that there is a chance that Max could be overtaken by George, meaning that for the first time since 2021, Max would not place top three in the championship. Will this actually happen? Possibly not, but George has shown insane strength and good race pace this year, highlighting that he could be a championship contender in the next few years.

It's all to play for in Monza, and fans wonder if there will be a drastic championship change. Will Lando close the gap to Oscar, or will Oscar widen the gap?

Article written by Em Haines