Belgian Grand Prix live updates: McLaren issue team orders for race
Aussie Oscar Piastri's championship lead sits at nine points but teammate Lando Norris is ready to bring the gap down and will start from pole position.
The Brit proved too good during qualifying as he pipped out Piastri with Ferrari's Charles Leclerc and Red Bull's Max Verstappen lining up on the second row.
Norris is chasing his third straight victory and his fifth on the season, a feat that would match Piastri who's last victory came in Spain at the start of June.
While track conditions have been dry over the course of the weekend, the race is set to unfold in wet conditions with the heavens opening above the famous Spa-francorchamps circuit.
Don't miss a second of the action with the lights set to go out from 11pm (AEST).
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McLaren forced to sacrifice one driver as Oscar Piastri-Lando Norris strategy dilemma looms
Don't miss out on the headlines from F1. Followed categories will be added to My News. McLaren faces a difficult choice of sacrificing one driver for the betterment of the team during Sunday night's Hungarian Grand Prix and it could cost Oscar Piastri dearly in his bid for a first world title. After Charles Leclerc stunned the F1 grid by claiming pole at the Hungarian GP on Saturday, world championship leader Piastri and his teammate Lando Norris had to settle for second and third, respectively. Fox Sports, available on Kayo Sports, is the only place to watch every practice, qualifying session and race in the 2025 FIA Formula One World Championship™ LIVE in 4K. New to Kayo? Join now and get your first month for just $1. With Leclerc's teammate Lewis Hamilton down in 12th, McLaren's two-against-one situation at the front of the grid gives them a theoretical advantage over Ferrari. But with the constructors' championship firmly in McLaren's grasp, it is the drivers' championship that poses the biggest headache for the team. Norris is 16 points behind Piastri in the championship standings after 13 of this year's 24 races. But this weekend's strategy could change the complexion of the championship. Given the difficulty of overtaking at the Hungaroring, the most effective way to make ground at the circuit is via an undercut – a pit stop strategy where a driver pits earlier than their rival to gain track position. That was on show last year when Norris controversially undercut leader Piastri. McLaren reversed their usual protocol of allowing the driver ahead on track to pit first to nullify the threat of Norris being undercut from those behind him, but that swapped the order of their drivers. After refusing on multiple occasions to allow Piastri to pass and return to the lead, Norris finally accepted the orders in the closing stages. But this time around, McLaren is widely expected to pit one of their cars early, which Sky Sports F1's Jamie Chadwick says will ultimately sacrifice one of them, which could ultimately turn the entire drivers' championship on its head. 'McLaren kind of needs to sacrifice one, almost, to help the other one if they really want to give themselves the best chance (of winning),' he said on the broadcast on Friday. If one driver pits early, they will be the one on the worn tyres towards the end of the race, but will likely have a positional advantage on a track where overtaking is tricky. And it appears most likely that Piastri would be the one to take the bullet, remaining out on the track, pushing Leclerc while Norris undercuts both the Aussie and the Ferrari driver. A perfect example of this strategy was at the 2019 Singapore Grand Prix, when Sebastian Vettel pitted from third place before Charles Leclerc and Lewis Hamilton, who were ahead of him. With fresh tyres, Vettel produced a quick outlap compared to the slower inlap for those ahead of him, and by the time Leclerc exited the pits Vettel was able to jump into the race lead. That one move would ultimately result in him going on to register his 53rd and final F1 win. But regardless of strategy, Piastri believes both he and Norris will be given a chance by McLaren to win at the Hungaroring. 'I think we're both going to try and win the race. I think that's our goal,' he told Sky Sports F1. 'We'll have to wait and see what the weather does. It's a place where strategy is a factor as well. 'There are a lot of things where you can win or lose, but I'm sure we'll both be trying to win the race in our own right. 'Potentially [we need to be on different strategies], it depends on what our pace is like and where we end up after lap one. 'If you pit earlier, you can get the undercut but pay for that later in the stint. If you go later, then you've got to try to overtake on track, so there are pros and cons to both.' Originally published as McLaren forced to sacrifice one driver as Oscar Piastri-Lando Norris strategy dilemma looms
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McLaren forced to sacrifice one driver as Oscar Piastri-Lando Norris strategy dilemma looms
McLaren faces a difficult choice of sacrificing one driver for the betterment of the team during Sunday night's Hungarian Grand Prix and it could cost Oscar Piastri dearly in his bid for a first world title. After Charles Leclerc stunned the F1 grid by claiming pole at the Hungarian GP on Saturday, world championship leader Piastri and his teammate Lando Norris had to settle for second and third, respectively. Fox Sports, available on Kayo Sports, is the only place to watch every practice, qualifying session and race in the 2025 FIA Formula One World Championship™ LIVE in 4K. New to Kayo? Join now and get your first month for just $1. With Leclerc's teammate Lewis Hamilton down in 12th, McLaren's two-against-one situation at the front of the grid gives them a theoretical advantage over Ferrari. But with the constructors' championship firmly in McLaren's grasp, it is the drivers' championship that poses the biggest headache for the team. Norris is 16 points behind Piastri in the championship standings after 13 of this year's 24 races. But this weekend's strategy could change the complexion of the championship. Given the difficulty of overtaking at the Hungaroring, the most effective way to make ground at the circuit is via an undercut – a pit stop strategy where a driver pits earlier than their rival to gain track position. That was on show last year when Norris controversially undercut leader Piastri. McLaren reversed their usual protocol of allowing the driver ahead on track to pit first to nullify the threat of Norris being undercut from those behind him, but that swapped the order of their drivers. After refusing on multiple occasions to allow Piastri to pass and return to the lead, Norris finally accepted the orders in the closing stages. But this time around, McLaren is widely expected to pit one of their cars early, which Sky Sports F1's Jamie Chadwick says will ultimately sacrifice one of them, which could ultimately turn the entire drivers' championship on its head. 'McLaren kind of needs to sacrifice one, almost, to help the other one if they really want to give themselves the best chance (of winning),' he said on the broadcast on Friday. If one driver pits early, they will be the one on the worn tyres towards the end of the race, but will likely have a positional advantage on a track where overtaking is tricky. And it appears most likely that Piastri would be the one to take the bullet, remaining out on the track, pushing Leclerc while Norris undercuts both the Aussie and the Ferrari driver. A perfect example of this strategy was at the 2019 Singapore Grand Prix, when Sebastian Vettel pitted from third place before Charles Leclerc and Lewis Hamilton, who were ahead of him. With fresh tyres, Vettel produced a quick outlap compared to the slower inlap for those ahead of him, and by the time Leclerc exited the pits Vettel was able to jump into the race lead. That one move would ultimately result in him going on to register his 53rd and final F1 win. But regardless of strategy, Piastri believes both he and Norris will be given a chance by McLaren to win at the Hungaroring. 'I think we're both going to try and win the race. I think that's our goal,' he told Sky Sports F1. 'We'll have to wait and see what the weather does. It's a place where strategy is a factor as well. 'There are a lot of things where you can win or lose, but I'm sure we'll both be trying to win the race in our own right. 'Potentially [we need to be on different strategies], it depends on what our pace is like and where we end up after lap one. 'If you pit earlier, you can get the undercut but pay for that later in the stint. If you go later, then you've got to try to overtake on track, so there are pros and cons to both.'
