RACING LINES
Damien Smith
Ferraris were exposed on track in Australia, then in parc fermé in China
A win each for Lando Norris and Oscar Piastri proved pre-season predictions correct that McLaren would start the season with an edge, as Formula 1 heads to round three in Japan this weekend.
Norris’s victory in Australia and Piastri’s in China were equally emphatic and set up a prospect that has left the Brit both excited and nervous: the team-mates are primed to test McLaren’s ability to maintain internal harmony as they fight it out for the world championship. History tells us how that usually ends.
Then again, it won’t necessarily be an allpapaya duel. Max Verstappen and George Russell have also started the season on the front foot for Mercedes-AMG and Red Bull, and with 22 races and eight months to run, it would be premature to rule out their chances of clawing back the fast-starting McLarens. We hoped for a classic, and it’s looking good: F1 is beautifully poised.