After 14 rounds, just nine points separate the pair, with Piastri narrowly leading the drivers’ standings as both drivers chase their maiden world title.

Their fight has been the defining storyline of the campaign, with McLaren emerging as the team to beat and recording 11 victories so far.

While intra-team rivalries have historically boiled over in title fights, Stella said McLaren’s environment has kept the competition healthy.

“If anything, the relationship between Oscar and Lando keeps improving,” Stella said.

“This is not the effect of a random evolution. This is because we invest in relationships.

“When I refer to fundamentals of F1, relationships are probably slightly less tangible, but I think they are as fundamental as aerodynamics.

“This involves the relationship between drivers and the team and between the drivers themselves.”

Tensions briefly surfaced earlier this season when the two collided in Canada, though the incident was swiftly resolved after Norris admitted fault.

 

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With no other flashpoints between them, Stella highlighted the importance of learning from moments of friction to avoid longer-term disruption.

He pointed to the 2024 Hungarian Grand Prix, when Norris yielded to Piastri under team orders, as a key moment in building trust and refining the way McLaren handles high-pressure situations.

“If I take the race we had last year in Hungary, we spent quite a lot of time reviewing that individually with the drivers and together,” he said.

“We tried to learn from each other as much as possible. We reminded ourselves that Formula 1 is difficult, and we are always going to face some difficulties.

“This is an awareness we need to have. From there, what can we do to improve? What can we do as a team to make sure we have a framework that allows Lando and Oscar to pursue their aspirations, always protecting the interests of the team?”

Stella also admitted he was surprised by just how dominant McLaren has been in 2025.

The team currently tops the constructors’ championship with 559 points – more than double second-placed Ferrari – while Piastri and Norris share 11 of the season’s 14 victories.

The Italian credited both the car and the team’s aggressive development approach.

“I’ve been surprised by this level of competitiveness,” he said.

“When last year we discussed how much effort we wanted to put in improving the 2024 car, we definitely wanted to be very ambitious… So how do we do that?

“We embraced a very aggressive approach to innovation. The MCL39 is a very innovative car.”

Recent upgrades, Stella explained, have further boosted McLaren’s pace in the past few races.

“Even if we consider the last three, four races, there’s been quite a lot of new parts that have been added… I think this has helped a lot in creating this trend and finding that in the last three races, we were definitely very competitive,” Stella added.

Reflecting on the team’s journey, Stella highlighted the rate of progress and collaborative culture as standout factors.

“If I had to pick a couple of features of the journey that is happening here at McLaren, I would say the rate of progress that we have had in a couple of years is in itself pretty unique,” said Stella.

“The second one is that there are no superstars. It’s like a proper team journey, and this includes even the drivers.

“Once again, I’m a lucky team principal because the two drivers are very reasonable, very fair, very correct, humble, and above all, they understand that we are here not only to pursue our interest in the present but also to protect the future of their own careers and of McLaren Racing.”

Piastri and Norris enter the final 10 races more than three wins ahead of Max Verstappen in the drivers’ championship, while McLaren leads Ferrari by more than double the points the Scuderia has scored in 2025 so far.