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Lando Norris claimed his third win of the 2025 Formula 1 season at the Austrian Grand Prix, fending off intense pressure from teammate Oscar Piastri in a thrilling head-to-head McLaren showdown. The victory marked a strong comeback for Norris, who had crashed into Piastri in the previous race in Canada.
Starting from pole at the Red Bull Ring, Norris held off Charles Leclerc at Turn 1, while Piastri overtook the Ferrari driver around the outside to take second. From there, it became a race-long duel between the McLarens. Piastri launched multiple DRS-assisted attacks, including a moment on Lap 11 when he passed Norris into Turn 3, only to lock up and allow his teammate to reclaim the lead. "I probably could have done a better job when I just got ahead momentarily," Piastri later admitted.
Their battle nearly turned disastrous on Lap 20 when Piastri locked up again into Turn 4, narrowly avoiding contact. The McLaren pit wall warned the Australian the move was "too marginal" and said, "We can't do that again." Norris pitted first, with Piastri stopping three laps later and rejoining 5.5 seconds behind.
Traffic complicated the closing laps, as Piastri's gap narrowed to three seconds before lapped driver Franco Colapinto squeezed him onto the grass, earning a five-second penalty. "It was a lot of fun – for me a lot of stress, but a lot of fun!" Norris said. "Especially when [Piastri] was in DRS. The DRS is so big around here... once I got him out of the gap, I could manage things."
Charles Leclerc completed the podium ahead of Lewis Hamilton, who still awaits his first Ferrari podium. George Russell was fifth, as Mercedes struggled in the heat. Rookie Kimi Antonelli collided with Max Verstappen at Turn 3 on Lap 1, taking both out. "I got hit like crazy," Verstappen fumed over the radio.
Liam Lawson finished sixth, followed by Fernando Alonso and Gabriel Bortoleto, who celebrated his first F1 points. Nico Hulkenberg charged from the back to ninth, with Esteban Ocon rounding out the top ten.
Red Bull endured a point-less weekend on home soil, and Norris' win cut Piastri's championship lead to 15 points. The F1 paddock now heads to Silverstone for the British Grand Prix from July 4–6.
