Zak Brown and Laurent Mekies opened up on the F1 2025 title scene and how they are handling the situation, while reflecting on how the season has been.
It is the final showdown to clinch the F1 2025 drivers’ title in Abu Dhabi GP and certainly McLaren has more headache than Red Bull. The former has Lando Norris in the lead by 12 points over the latter’s Max Verstappen, while the former’s Oscar Piastri is 16 points away in third.
McLaren has two drivers in the game, which makes it tough for a team, who is already under pressure off-late to keep it fair between their two F1 drivers. The team orders topic under ‘Papaya Rules’ has been ongoing for the whole season and it is again the topic in the finale.
Even though the free to race instruction has been given, but if things don’t pan out the same on Sunday and there is a chance where one has to help the other, Brown said that they will implement the team orders then, to disallow Verstappen from getting the world championship.
At this juncture, it will be on Piastri to help Norris, which Brown thinks that the Australian will yield. This situation has led McLaren into a downfall from the Australian quarters. The Australian fans think their driver has been treated poorly and that Norris has been favoured all-through the season.
The topic even reached Australian Parliament, much to the surprise to Piastri. Brown has seen the negative comments, but has stayed away from answering them. The American has been under fire for long and believes that McLaren will be able to handle a disappointed driver post Abu Dhabi GP.
He reflected on the journey to the final race and raised the Verstappen flag, but didn’t think that McLaren were at any point afraid of the Dutchman. He acknowledged the fightback from Red Bull and four-time F1 champion, but has full fait on the credentials of both Norris and Piastri.
Mekies showered praise on Verstappen, for his resilience and fightback, in his quest of the fifth F1 title. He acknowledged the work done by the people at Milton Keynes, especially after Zandvoort. They cut the gap from 104 points to 12 in one of the biggest comeback seen in the history of the sport.
Lead-up to finale –
Brown: “No. It’s kind of business as usual. Of course, it’s not business as usual. There’s a lot riding on the weekend for both our guys, but they are very relaxed. I like the mindset in which they’ve come in. We’re trying to obviously just be business as usual and not think about what the potential outcome can be and do what we’ve done the first 23 races — maybe if you leave a few out — and go racing again this weekend.”
Mekies: “Exactly in the same way, really. We try to get the car in the right window. We don’t get that easily on any track. Qatar has been particularly difficult. Vegas was not easy either. If we do that, it doesn’t mean that Max will be on pole, or that he will win the race, but it means he will be close enough to these guys to fight for it. And then at that moment, whatever happens behind him is not in our control. So, we don’t think about it. I think it’s even quite refreshing to see that we’re not even discussing whether we are going to race cleanly or not.
“It’s a given that the guys out there will race cleanly. Do we need a strong Yuki to put as many cars between Max and the rest of the group if we are strong enough to lead with Max? Yes. So, we need a strong Yuki. We need a strong Mercedes. We need a strong Ferrari. We need a strong everything. It’s going to be, I’m sure, a fantastic fight, and it will keep us all very awake until the last lap.”
Team orders, drivers obliging –
Brown: “Yes. In the sense of team orders, as long as both drivers have a chance to win the World Championship — which they clearly do sitting here right now — then it’s business as usual. They’re free to race. Obviously, we’ll be practical and realistic. If, as the weekend develops, as the race develops, it becomes clear that one has a significantly better chance than the other, then we’re a team that wants to win the Drivers’ Championship, and we will race accordingly, to do whatever we can to get that driver in front to try and win the race. So, you know, our team orders have been around giving equal opportunity to win the championship. But if, as the race plays out, it becomes clear that both can’t, then we’re going to do what’s in the best interest of the team and try and win the Drivers’ Championship. I don’t think it’s a U-turn.
“We’re going to start the weekend like we have the other 23, which is going in, giving both drivers equal opportunity. I think last year, once it became clear that Lando had the best chance to catch Max and Oscar was almost statistically out of it — in Baku — we then asked Oscar to support Lando, and it ended up being Lando who supported Oscar in that particular race, and Oscar won the race. So, we’re going to use common sense. We’re not going to throw away a Drivers’ Championship over a sixth and seventh place, a third and a fourth place, a fifth and a sixth place if one of our drivers doesn’t have the opportunity. I think everything we do, we do with the drivers so they know what the game plan is for this weekend. And, you know, kind of outside of our racing team, you’re a bit damned if you do, damned if you don’t. And so we’re going to just stay true to our racing principles. We want to win the Constructors’ — which we’ve done — we want to win the Drivers’, and so we’ll see how the race plays out. Yes [Oscar will move if we ask him to].
“Our drivers have always complied with team wishes, just as we comply with their wishes. So, I’ve got no doubt either of our drivers will continue to race as they’ve done brilliantly — in the best interest of the team. Oh, we’re definitely committed to giving both drivers equal opportunity to win the World Championship. I think you’re always… Even when you win, on Monday, you talk about what you could have done differently or better. So we’re constantly evolving as a racing team. But the fundamentals of having two drivers that would give equal opportunity to win, that won’t change. Do we look back and have lots of learnings? I remember when we finished first and second in Spain, our debrief on Monday was about eight things that were close calls that we could have done better. I think that’s the nature of a Formula 1 team — to always evaluate and go, “What could we have done differently, what could we have done better?” I think in sport you’re going to win some, you’re going to lose some.
“Of course, when you’ve made mistakes, you wish you hadn’t, but that’s just not realistic. I’ve yet to see any person or team in any sport have the perfect season. So, we’re no different than that. But fundamentally, the way we go racing — that won’t change. I mean, we’re going to race cleanly. Obviously, strategy comes into play, but I like everyone on the Formula 1 grid, and I think we’re here to race hard, race clean. So that’s exactly what I expect — how the race will play out. We all have multiple cars, etcetera, so you’ll be smart and strategic, but I think it’ll be a very healthy battle to the finish. You’ve got two drivers. I think we’ve seen many times over the years — three drivers coming into the final race, and the driver in third wins the championship. So, no. We’re going to wait and see how the race plays out. Sitting here right now, I kind of view it as all three drivers have an equal opportunity to win the Grand Prix. So, until that changes, we’re going to go racing as usual.”
Season reflection, fight –
Brown: “Awesome season. Tied Red Bull for clinching the Constructors’. Really would have been nice to break the record, but they tag teamed me — 14 wins, both drivers have seven wins, celebrated our 200th win. It’s been a spectacular year. It’s been probably the best year McLaren’s had in, I don’t know, 25, 30 years. So, I don’t think you can reflect on anything other than an awesome year. Obviously, if we don’t win, we’ll be disappointed, but we’ll reflect back on the season and it was a hell of a season.”
Handling loss if it so, even driver –
Brown: “Yeah. Clearly, it’ll be a disappointment, but Max is not an easy four-time World Champion to knock off his perch. He’s won seven races, eight races? Seven races. So, it’s not like he’s won two. He’s had equally as competitive a racing season. You’ve got three drivers fighting for the championship that have all had spectacular years. We’ll tackle that when and if that happens. We’ve got two awesome guys. They’ve been great team players. They understand it. We understand the emotions of the sport and the highs and lows. We’ve had plenty of highs and lows this year, and we’ll just put our arm around him — if that’s the situation — and come back and give it a go again next year. And hopefully, we’re in the same position.”
Bias call –
Brown: “All that’s really important to us is how the team operates and works together and works with our drivers, so we block it all out. I have seen it. Some of the comments that you see are very uninformed but it’s sport, it’s emotional, people are entitled to their opinions, and I can’t go around correcting everyone’s views. But you do see some nonsense out there.”
Verstappen factor, he is relaxed –
Brown: “No. Max is an awesome driver. Four-time World Champion. Arguably, definitely, one of the greatest ever. It’s awesome racing against Max. It’s awesome racing against Red Bull. It’s one of the best teams ever. So, to be sitting here in the final race with two drivers — it’s awesome. It’s sport. We enjoy it. It’s kind of like our Game Seven – I’m a baseball guy, so forgive me for that. But this is what we dream of. As Jonathan said, to be sitting here racing against an awesome team like Red Bull, an awesome racing driver like Max, going down to the last race, it’s mega exciting.”
Mekies: “He is incredibly relaxed. There is no acting there. Honestly, he has been like that… For the little that I’ve seen of him in the second part of the year, he has been like that in the bad moment and the positive moment. He is very much embracing the approach we have. We take it race by race. We never quite looked at the championship points. We always felt that you go to a race, you try to get the car in the right window, which is difficult enough, and in the second part of the year, if we were doing that, it meant that you would have a chance to fight for the win. And then on Sunday night, you look each other in the eyes and you know if you’re doing a good job or not. And the points are just the consequence. And I guess that approach has given both Max and the team the confidence of focusing on the right things and not to feel pressure but instead to feel a privilege to be in a historical fight, in a historical comeback.
“It’s you guys that are here to judge how historical a season is compared to the others. I think whether or not Max will win, it’s probably fair to say that the world discovered an even more extraordinary Max this season, after his fourth world title. A bit because of the magnitude of the comeback. A bit because, as you say, he has been so relaxed, so well seated in the team. Embracing so much that challenge with the right spirit. A bit also because we have seen him racing elsewhere. I think it has all taken a bit of a part of our heart when we have seen him spending his free weekends being a new dad, racing with GT cars around the world. And I don’t know, it’s up to you guys to say if in that case, that will become the best of his titles. But for sure, in terms of whatever happens next, the scale of the comeback is something that hopefully will go in a few history books. Look — this guy never gets it wrong, you know. Max just never does a mistake. I say that like, you know, he keeps surprising us every day. You throw him out there, sometimes the car is great, sometimes it’s a touch less great, something like we would hope so, and he doesn’t miss a start, he doesn’t miss tyre management, he doesn’t miss an overtaking.
“He is just the way he is. And as Jonathan touched on earlier, it is true that it gives a lot of confidence to the whole team. It is true that it fits so well with the general approach this team has on how you go racing — taking maximum risk, accepting the pain when the risk goes over the edge. If you think back to the 2,000 people in Milton Keynes that have been doing the magic in the shadows, trying to get that car back to life in the second part of the year — obviously, that creates a great connection, and yes, it gives great confidence. Difficult to talk for him, but let me put it this way. Whatever happens in these next three days, the turnaround has been sensational. I think the team should take pride in that. Max should take huge pride in that. So, I guess that’s the first point. The second point is, as both Jonathan and Zak mentioned, we all work all our life — and that applies to drivers as well — to be involved in this sort of moment, where the intensity is sky-high, the pressure is sky-high.
“But that’s what we’re really here for – to be in that fight. So, I think if you combine that and the experience, and the fact that even now, even with a sensational turnaround, you’re still coming to the last race with a 12-point deficit — winning is not enough. Your main competitor needs to be out of the podiums for you. So it’s still very remote. The combination of all of that and the approach with which we go racing — concentrate on this race, get the car in the right window — makes that we are all trying to enjoy it more than to think about the pressure.”
Turnaround –
Mekies: “The credit for the turnaround — the spectacular turnaround of form — is very simple. It’s down to 2,000 people that you never see back in Milton Keynes, who simply didn’t want to give up. It didn’t matter how hard the first part of the season was, how hard the changes that were made in the middle of the season were for them to digest — it didn’t matter. They just didn’t want to give up. That’s what they have managed to achieve – a historic turnaround. They are the guys and girls behind the fact that everything started to click together. They unlocked a little bit of performance, and a little bit more performance led to even more risk.
“We fell quite a few times. I’m sure you guys recall Budapest. I’m sure you recall Brazil qualifying. You don’t take risk for free. Nothing is for free. You take risk, you fall, you get back on your feet, and you love the way you’re going racing altogether. And everybody is in the same boat. Max is in the same boat, 2,000 people are in the same boat, our shareholders are in the same boat. That’s where the secret is — a united group that just doesn’t want to give up.”
Here’s what the drivers said along with F1 rivals
