Yesterday at 09:15
1997 F1 champion Jacques Villeneuve has backed Max Verstappen to
beat the McLaren drivers to the title this year. The season has
largely been dominated by the Woking-based squad, with its drivers
Oscar Piastri and Lando Norris winning 12 out of the opening 15
rounds. However, McLaren appears to have taken a small step back in
the pecking order of late. Verstappen has won two out of the last
three grands prix and has narrowed the gap to championship leader
Piastri to 66 points. With six rounds remaining, the Dutchman has
been tipped by Villeneuve to make a shock surge and overcome the
deficit. "Verstappen," Villeneuve told La Gazetta dello Sport when
asked to pick his 2025 champion. "And it will be his best world
championship. "The two McLaren drivers are suffering too much from
the pressure. They need to wake up." Title success for Verstappen
this year would mark a new record for the sport for the largest
margin overthrown, with the gap to Piastri sitting at 104 points at
the start of September. Speaking alongside Villeneuve was two-time
champion Mika Hakkinen, one of McLaren's most successful drivers.
The Finn does not believe McLaren will be defeated by Verstappen
and is confident either Piastri or Norris will end the year as
champion. "I have to say McLaren, of course," Hakkinen predicted
for the title fight. "The team will certainly give the drivers
orders to avoid trouble. "They're both very good, Lando has much
more experience, which counts for a lot. But he also scores fewer
points. So I don't know, one of the two."
