F1 2025 Italy GP LIVE: Qualifying start time, schedule and practice results

Piastri said: “It’s a bit more difficult [for Norris] now, but I don’t expect much to change.

“I think we’ll race each other the same way. I think the amount of risk taking will be the same.

“We’re both trying to be as fast as we can. It’s not like we’ve been holding anything back from that side of things. So I don’t expect anything to change.”

Red Bull team principal Laurent Mekies has acknowledged that the team’s engine project for 2026 is a “crazy” undertaking.

Mekies, who replaced the axed Christian Horner in July, has one eye focused on the sport’s new engine and chassis regulations next year, when Red Bull will take to the track with their own power unit, in partnership with American automotive giant Ford.

A project first announced two-and-a-half years ago, with Horner the figurehead, work continues apace in Milton Keynes for an engine capable of matching the likes of Mercedes and Ferrari.

1. Oscar Piastri (McLaren) – 309 points

2. Lando Norris (McLaren) – 275 points

3. Max Verstappen (Red Bull) – 205 points

6. Lewis Hamilton (Ferrari) – 109 points

Cadillac have signed IndyCar star Colton Herta as an F1 test driver, with the American switching back to the European single-seater pyramid in the hope of an F1 seat in the future.

Herta, 25, has been linked with an F1 switch for a number of years and there was speculation that American team Cadillac could pick him as a home driver for their debut in the sport next year.

While they instead acquired the services of experienced drivers Valtteri Bottas and Sergio Perez, Herta has now been announced as a test driver, returning to Europe where he previously raced in British F3 as a teenager.

Piastri now has a 34-point lead over Norris after the Brit’s unfortunate retirement in Zandvoort:

1. Oscar Piastri (McLaren) – 309 points

2. Lando Norris (McLaren) – 275 points

3. Max Verstappen (Red Bull) – 205 points

6. Lewis Hamilton (Ferrari) – 109 points

19. Yuki Tsunoda (Red Bull) – 12 points

Cadillac have signed IndyCar star Colton Herta as an F1 test driver, with the American switching back to the European single-seater pyramid in the hope of an F1 seat in the future.

Herta, 25, has been linked with an F1 switch for a number of years and there was speculation that American team Cadillac could pick him as a home driver for their debut in the sport next year.

While they instead acquired the services of experienced drivers Valtteri Bottas and Sergio Perez, Herta has now been announced as a test driver, returning to Europe where he previously raced in British F3 as a teenager.

Formula One has signed a four-year extension with the Monaco Grand Prix, with the race set to appear on the calendar until 2035.

Building on the previous deal until 2031, F1 has come to a fresh agreement with the Automobile Club of Monaco, despite the sport’s crown jewel event coming under criticism for a lack of overtaking.

Two mandatory pit stops were introduced this year with the intention of adding intrigue to what is usually a processional affair. However, teams worked around the rules with a slow-running car helping the other car make, effectively, a free pit-stop.

Asked if he believes Piastri now needs to suffer a DNF in order for him to win the title, Norris replied: “No because in the end, if he’s done a better job, then credit to him.

“That’s how I am. I can still win the championship without anything like that happening and that’s the way I wish to do it. It’d make my life easier if there were just some more drivers in between us now and again.

“We’re so dominant as a team that it almost makes my life harder, that’s probably the most frustrating part of it all.

“But it’s still the best man win and if it’s that way at the end of the season, I’ll respect that.”