Bernie: McLaren Favours Lando
Posted on September 20, 2025
For 2025 F1 World Championship?
FORMER FORMULA ONE SUPREMO BERNIE ECCLESTONE has accused McLaren of preferring a world champion named Lando Norris, rather than his teammate Oscar Piastri!
The diminutive Brit, never one to shy away from putting the cat amongst the pigeons, believes McLaren’s decision to use team orders at Monza, during the Italian Grand Prix, shows they are favouring one of their drivers.
“Mistakes like missed pit stops, engine failures, and suspension failures may have become less common, but they’re part of the sport,” Bernie said.
A Pensive Bernie
During the latter stages of the Italian Grand Prix last up, McLaren instructed Oscar to let Lando through after a crucial pitstop period of Sunday’s race at Monza on September 7.
McLaren had stopped Oscar first, arguing they had to cover off Ferrari’s Charles Leclerc, with Lando stopping one lap later. But a delay when changing his front-left tyre meant that he rejoined the race behind the Aussie.
As the pit stop issue was entirely out of Lando’s control, McLaren reasoned that it was only fair to make Oscar give up his position. Which he did, although not without initial hesitation.
It was a decision team principal Andrea Stella described as rooted in “fairness” and “consistency with our principles”.
Bernie weighs in, with both feet!
Bernie has always been a larger-than-life figure, pictured above congratulating Oscar Piastri on a win, as an unfortunate headless Oscar Piastri looks on!
Bernie held the reins of Formula One for more than 40 years, with his time in the sport coming to an end in 2017 following Liberty Media’s takeover.
In a long and storied career, the 94-year-old has never been afraid to voice his opinion and suggested it was a clear sign that McLaren wanted Lando to win the title, not Oscar.
No surprise then that the team orders saga has been met with a mixed reaction.
Former McLaren driver David Coulthard boldly accused his old team of “manipulating” the race result.
F1 History in the Making
And, consider this: McLaren are on the brink of making F1 history this weekend at the Azerbaijan Grand Prix, with a mathematical chance of securing the constructors’ championship title earlier than any team ever before. The British outfit has dominated the season, and now they have their first opportunity to mathematically confirm their successful title defence. With just seven more rounds to follow after Baku, including three Sprint races, McLaren’s lead of 337 points is so substantial that they could realistically clinch the title by Sunday’s end.
There are just eight rounds to go as the F1 caravanserai descended this week upon Baku, for the Azerbaijan Grand Prix – with just 31 points between Oscar and Lando.
Bernie the Billionaire
Clockwise: Bernie and Fabiana Ecclestone. Bernie’s daughters Petra (left) and Tamara. Tamara and Fabiana. Family Yacht Petara. Petra’s Pad in LA. Bernie’s Dassault Falcon Jet.
Petra and Tamara Ecclestone were popular Celebrity TV personalities in the UK, back in the day. As was their Dad!
Bernie Ecclestone oversaw F1 for more than 40 years, with his time in the sport coming to an end in 2017 following Liberty Media’s takeover.
Worth billions, Bernie had been associated with F1 since the 1950s. During the 1958 season he entered two Grand Prix races but failed to qualify for either. His decision to choose management was a wise one.
In 1972 he became a team-owner, acquiring Brabham, which he ran for 15 years. Two years later, he formed the Formula One Constructors Association, emerging as chief executive in 1978.
Bernie Ecclestone famously became a father for the fourth time at the grand old age of 89 back in 2020, with he and his third wife Fabiana welcoming Ace (his first son, now five-years-old), into their extraordinary world.
Back to the Italian Grand Prix for a moment, and it is simply amazing to consider that in Practice 3 at Monza – Temple of Speed, all 20 cars were within one second of the leader. That really puts the sport of Formula 1 into perspective!
Crazy, chaotic, dramatic
As 36-year Daniel Ricciardo begins his role as a Global Ford Racing Ambassador, it’s well worth remembering that he famously won at Baku for Red Bull in 2017.
The previous year, curiously, it was known as the European Grand Prix, held on the newly introduced Baku City Circuit. The following year, it officially became the Azerbaijan Grand Prix, and Daniel famously won that chaotic race after climbing from 17th to 1st in what is considered a masterclass in perseverance.
Safety Cars, Red Flags, and Tempers Flared
After an early pit stop dropped him to 17th, the brilliant Aussie carved through the field with daring overtakes and perfect timing. His triple overtake down the long Baku straight was labeled “pure audacity”.
There were three safety car periods and a red flag—rare even for street circuits, in an extraordinary race, available on YouTube, if you care to chase it down to view highlights of Daniel’s finest victories.
Daniel has now joined the historic US car manufacturer, just as his former employer Red Bull prepares to enter a technical partnership with the famous marque for the new F1 2026 rules. Red Bull will produce its own power units for the first time in F1 2026 via its newly established Powertrains division, working in collaboration with Ford, as currently engine supply Honda links up with the Aston Martin team.
So don’t be surprised to see Daniel back in the fold!
Baku – City of the Winds
The European leg of the 2025 Formula 1 season reached an exciting closure at Monza with the teams setting up for the final third of the championship, underway now in Baku, the City of Winds.
The road distance the transporters have travelled to Baku is 4087.3 km, about the same as driving from Perth to Sydney!
The stunning Azerbaijan capital is the biggest urban area on the Caspian Sea, as well as of the entire Caucasus region.
It has hosted a Grand Prix every year since 2016 – with the exception of 2020, due to COVID. Curiously, that first year it was known as the European Grand Prix, even though Azerbaijan is geographically in Asia.
Although it’s a street track, Baku has some very long straights where the cars hit seriously high top speeds, and that places significant vertical loads on the tyres.
The circuit is 6.003 kilometres long and winds its way through the old town and the more modern part of the Azerbaijan capital, boasting 20 corners, many of them at 90 degrees.
The main straight is very wide and has room for at least three cars to race side by side. Yet in some sections of the old city – such as turn 8, the narrowest of all – the track is only seven metres wide.
Remember, 2025 F1 cars are five metres from nose to tail.
Valtteri hit 378km/h at Baku!
As is always the case on a street circuit like Baku, the margin for error is minimal and the slightest mistake from a driver carries a high price. Which means the Safety Car can be a regular feature both in qualifying and the race.
Speeds in Baku also vary wildly. Remember, the unofficial fastest top speed recorded in a F1 event was set here by Valtteri Bottas who hit 378 km/h in qualifying for the 2016 race.
But there are tight sections tackled at around 60 km/h, making life difficult for the engineers when it comes to defining the level of aerodynamic downforce, seeking the most efficient compromise to ensure the car is competitive in both qualifying and the race.
The C6 is back for Baku
Pirelli brings its softest trio of 2025 compounds for the Azerbaijan Grand Prix – a step softer than last year. In fact, the C6 is back as the Soft, having already been used in Imola, Monaco and Montreal – the C5 is the Medium and the C4 the Hard.
On a street circuit with low levels of grip and wear, bringing the same selection as in 2024 inevitably would have led to a one-stop strategy. At least this way, considering that this year’s range suffers much less from graining, it opens up the possibility of a two-stop strategy.
How well the teams and drivers have become adept at managing the tyres is evident, according to the Pirelli gurus, with Monza a stand-alone example.
Cooling a major factor
In Baku, the surface of the tyres goes through continuous cycles of heating and cooling, with very wide variations in temperature over the course of the lap, because of the different characteristics in various sections of the track.
Pirelli reminds us that In the tight parts in the old city, the tyres come under a lot of stress, increasing the surface temperature of the rubber
It then cools drastically, especially in the section from the exit of turn 16 to the braking zone for turn 1, which is taken pretty much at full throttle as the corners within it are really no more than just kinks in the road!
Statistics Corner
There have been eight Grands Prix held on the shore of the Caspian Sea, with seven different winners, including Oscar Piastri last year.
The only driver to have won twice is Sergio Perez, driving for Red Bull in 2021 and 2023.
Mercedes has won three – with Nico Rosberg in 2016, Lewis Hamilton in 2018 and Valtteri Bottas in 2019, while last year, Oscar Piastri was first across the finish line for McLaren.
Daniel’s 2017 win remains the standout.
Ferrari’s Charles Leclerc is the pole master of Baku, quickest in qualifying four times in a row from 2021 to 2024.
RACE SCHEDULE
WA TIME ZONE
AZERBAIJAN GRAND PRIX
Baku City Circuit | 19 – 21 September
Practice 1
Friday 19th September 16:30
Practice 2
Friday 19th September 20:00
Practice 3
Saturday 20th September 16:30
QUALIFYING
Saturday 20th September 20:00
RACE
Sunday 21st September
19:00
NEXT EVENT
SINGAPORE GRAND PRIX
Marina Bay Street Circuit | 03 – 05 October
EDITED by AC
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