Verstappen rates title hopes at ‘50-50’

Consecutive victories in Monza and Baku have catapulted Max Verstappen back into the 2025 championship fight, and suddenly it’s McLaren feeling the pressure.

Oscar Piastri’s nightmare outing in Azerbaijan has reopened the door for Red Bull’s quadruple world champion.

"I hope so!" the Australian laughed in Singapore when asked if the ‘old Oscar’ was now back in orange. "Obviously I don't want to repeat what happened in Baku, but mistakes are going to happen. I'm only human, at the end of the day. It's going to happen."

If those errors persist, though, McLaren’s policy of equal footing between its two drivers is already being questioned.

"Piastri is 25 points ahead of Norris and 69 ahead of Verstappen," Ralf Schumacher told Sky Deutschland. "If Max were to win the next race in Singapore, I can imagine that McLaren would get nervous and then have to make a decision."

That choice could mean Lando Norris being relegated to a support role, an idea he dismissed with humour. "I'm very concerned," he said sarcastically. "Very worried about it, and scared, frankly."

Within the paddock, Verstappen’s late-season charge is being taken seriously, though estimates of his percentage chances of a fifth consecutive crown differ.

Isack Hadjar put it at "10%... he's probably 60 points behind Oscar?" When corrected to 69, the Frenchman smirked: "Oh yeah, 69." Alex Albon suggested 15%, Charles Leclerc offered 20, while Norris conceded it was "more than zero".

Esteban Ocon added: "We all know Max and how dangerous he is when there's something to grab." Even George Russell, definitely not Verstappen's strongest supporter, quipped: "100%."

As for Verstappen, he played along. "I'm giving myself 50 percent. Either it works or it doesn't," he joked. "I'm taking it race by race. We have nothing to lose and are trying to make the most of our opportunities. McLaren has dominated this championship so far. Things like that don't change overnight."

Away from the title chase, rivals also admitted admiration for Verstappen’s versatility and freedom, after he clinched a GT3 debut win at the Nurburgring, but the Dutchman insists a breather is now overdue.

"I'm taking a weekend off," Verstappen smiled. "I'm taking a little break. After this weekend, I'll have driven six weekends in a row, so that's quite a lot."