McLaren's Norris and Piastri set clear boundaries ahead of Australian GP

Dominika Jordan
Mar 15, 2025, 03:54 AM ET

MELBOURNE — As the Australian Grand Prix kicks off the new season, McLaren's Lando Norris and Oscar Piastri reiterated that the ground rules are set and well understood between the two teammates. This comes as they prepare to take their positions at the forefront of the grid for Sunday's race. Norris' remarkable performance in Saturday's qualifying saw him edge out Piastri by a mere 0.084 seconds, securing the pole position.

Reflecting back to the end of last season, McLaren had instructed Piastri to support Norris during his title clash with Max Verstappen. They also revisited their 'papaya rules' following an intense duel between the teammates at the Italian Grand Prix's opening lap. As the new season begins, McLaren has made it clear that Norris and Piastri will start on equal terms within the team.

Norris emphasized the importance of maintaining these ground rules: "There's obviously been discussions, because we're prepared," Norris stated. "We know we're going to have a lot more of this kind of thing over the course of the season and there are clearly rules we cannot cross. Both cars will always have to stay in the race and that kind of thing." Norris continued, "It's just a little bit more space here and there. We're free to race, we're free to try and win races. What won us the constructors' championship last year was how we helped one another out."

Piastri echoed his teammate's sentiments: "We're free to race each other. I obviously want to win the race as much as Lando does; I think he summed it up very well." Piastri added, "Ultimately, we are racing for the team, it's a very important thing for us. I think, we said numerous times last year, I think the teamwork that we showed as drivers but also as a team is what won us the constructors' championship last year."

In the qualifying session, the McLaren duo created a 0.3-second gap over their closest challenger, Red Bull's Max Verstappen. Ferrari's Friday practice performance did not carry over to Saturday's qualifying, as Charles Leclerc and teammate Lewis Hamilton could manage only seventh and eighth positions respectively. Norris expressed his surprise: "I did expect Ferrari to be a bit quicker."

The scene is now set for an exhilarating start to the 24-race season, with McLaren aiming to maintain their momentum and collaborative spirit as they hit the track for the Australian GP.