The tides of the F1 2025 championship took a dramatic turn on Lap 65 of the Dutch Grand Prix when smoke erupted from the Mercedes power unit of Lando Norris’ McLaren. Within moments, the championship contender had abandoned his car, clutching his head in his hands as he watched the end of the race from the foot of a sand dune.

With teammate Oscar Piastri carrying his own MCL39 through to a seventh victory of the year, the points gap between the title rivals increased to 34 points with nine races to go. And it begged the question: Have we just witnessed the defining moment of the F1 2025 championship?

McLaren at the Dutch GP: A tale of two results

A glance at the timing charts throughout practice for the Dutch Grand Prix would have suggested a very clear story: Lando Norris of McLare

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