{"id":37319,"date":"2025-09-04T06:40:24","date_gmt":"2025-09-04T10:40:24","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/motorsports\/?p=37319"},"modified":"2025-09-04T06:40:24","modified_gmt":"2025-09-04T10:40:24","slug":"norris-i-just-have-to-keep-fighting-despite-34-point-deficit","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/motorsports\/2025\/09\/04\/norris-i-just-have-to-keep-fighting-despite-34-point-deficit\/","title":{"rendered":"Norris: “I just have to keep fighting” despite 34-point deficit"},"content":{"rendered":"

Formula 1 returns for the second race in two weeks at Italy’s Monza circuit, which will host a critical race in the title fight between Norris and Piastri<\/a>.<\/p>\n

During the summer break, most of the discourse about the Championship battle assumed it would be a season-long battle.<\/p>\n

With such fine margins separating the papaya duo, it was widely assumed the title would be decided in Abu Dhabi.<\/p>\n

Norris’ retirement last weekend changes this, putting him 34 points behind his Australian teammate.<\/p>\n

Looking ahead to what remains this season, the British driver will try and recover.<\/p>\n

\"\"
Lando Norris in Zandvoort, Netherlands. (Photo by James Sutton\/Getty Images)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Norris aims to bounce back in Monza<\/h2>\n

Throughout the season, both McLaren drivers will point to races where opportunities were missed.<\/p>\n

For Piastri, a 10-second penalty in Silverstone and incorrect strategy call in Hungary cost him likely victories.<\/p>\n

Had the 24-year-old won either of these races, his advantage over Norris would be far greater.<\/p>\n

After all, in the context of a direct fight between Piastri and Norris<\/a>, going from 1st to 2nd is a 14-point swing.<\/p>\n

For Norris, running into his teammate in Canada and crashing in qualifying an Jeddah were to costly moments.<\/p>\n

Nothing, however, will sting more than the #4 car’s retirement in Zandvoort<\/a>.<\/p>\n

Whilst Piastri was on course for victory, Norris still lost a huge number of points.<\/p>\n

Piastri now has a very healthy buffer in the standings, giving him vital breathing space.<\/p>\n

Recognising the shift in title dynamics, Norris still wants to keep a positive mindset:<\/p>\n

“I just have to keep fighting, keep doing what I can,” <\/em>Norris told Sky Sports<\/a>.<\/p>\n

“I was quick today, I thought I could fight for a win.<\/em><\/p>\n

“If you’re fighting for a win around here, t<\/em>hat’s normally just a good job already.<\/em><\/p>\n

“I take the positives, I look on, I’ll try to bounce back.<\/em><\/p>\n

“I’ve got tough competition, so it’s never going to be easy, but [I will] really make sure I do everything I can.”<\/em><\/p>\n

\"\"
Oscar Piastri lead during the F1 Grand Prix of Netherlands. (Photo by Sam Bloxham\/LAT Images)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

The stakes are raised at the Italian GP<\/h4>\n

For the first time in 2025, the numbers are painting a very worrisome picture for the British driver.<\/p>\n

If Piastri<\/a> wins 3 out of the next 9 races (assuming he finishes second in the others) that would be enough to clinch the title.<\/p>\n

Should the Australian emerge victorious this weekend, it would be a nightmare scenario for Norris.<\/p>\n

He would effectively be in a ‘must-win’ scenario at every race, otherwise Piastri could put his advantage beyond reach.<\/p>\n

This makes winning in Monza<\/a> this weekend essential for the British.<\/p>\n

Aside from the points situation, Norris also needs to try and generate some momentum.<\/p>\n

Winning the Championship is difficult given the current standings, but three consecutive wins would make the situation healthier.<\/p>\n

Failure to win in Italy would give Piastri the flexibility to have a slightly more conservative approach moving forward.<\/p>\n

To be clear, the Australian has insisted that his preparation and mentality will not change<\/a>.<\/p>\n

He insists that one race weekend could flip the script in the Championship race.<\/p>\n

Whilst this is true, it does not negate the mathematical realities of a Piastri victory this weekend.<\/p>\n

From a psychological perspective, it would also put Norris in a position where any mistake could end his title hopes.<\/p>\n

This would be another benefit, one of many, for Piastri to capitalise on for the remaining nine rounds.<\/p>\n

Main photo: Bryn Lennon\/Getty Images (McLaren media gallery)<\/em><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Formula 1 returns for the second race in two weeks at Italy’s Monza circuit, which will host a critical race in the title fight between Norris and Piastri. During the summer break, most of the discourse about the Championship battle assumed it would be a season-long battle. With such fine margins separating the papaya duo, […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":4927,"featured_media":37320,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_lmt_disableupdate":"no","_lmt_disable":"","sfio_featured_image":false,"sfio_embed_code":"","_ef_editorial_meta_date_first-draft-date":"","_ef_editorial_meta_paragraph_assignment":"","_ef_editorial_meta_checkbox_needs-photo":"","_ef_editorial_meta_number_word-count":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[4,3],"tags":[2452,444,66],"class_list":["post-37319","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-formula-1","category-news","tag-f1-2025-season","tag-lando-norris","tag-mclaren"],"modified_by":"Jaden Diaz-Ndisang","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/motorsports\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/37319","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/motorsports\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/motorsports\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/motorsports\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/4927"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/motorsports\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=37319"}],"version-history":[{"count":6,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/motorsports\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/37319\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":37347,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/motorsports\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/37319\/revisions\/37347"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/motorsports\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/37320"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/motorsports\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=37319"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/motorsports\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=37319"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/motorsports\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=37319"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}