McLaren boss points to “have our eyebrows raised” rivals in British GP

The McLaren Formula 1 team has some concerns going ahead into the ongoing 2025 British Grand Prix race weekend. Charles Leclerc and Lewis Hamilton have shown a strong pace for Ferrari, and this has unsettled Zak Brown (McLaren CEO) and Co.

During Friday's Free Practice 1, the seven-time world champion Lewis Hamilton came out as the fastest driver. In Free Practice 2, Lando Norris topped the timing sheets, but the duo of Hamilton and Leclerc was once again up there in second and third position.

In line with how well the Ferrari SF-25 has been working around the Silverstone racing circuit, Zak Brown has made it known that Ferrari has McLaren's 'eyebrows raised' at the track. In an interview, he said:

"We look good, the Ferraris look very quick over on lap and very good in the long runs. Don't rule out Max or the two Mercedes, but the two Ferraris are the ones that have our eyebrows raised at the moment."

Apart from the two Ferraris, Brown has also acknowledged the might of the Mercedes drivers, and also the reigning world champion, Max Verstappen. The qualifying session for the 2025 British Grand Prix is just a few hours away.

The first 11 rounds of the ongoing campaign have been mainly dominated by Lando Norris and Oscar Piastri in their superfast MCL39.

McLaren's Oscar Piastri deems Ferrari 'very competitive' at Silverstone

F1 Grand Prix of Great Britain - Final Practice - Source: Getty

While Zak Brown has asserted that the Ferraris looked really quick around the Silverstone racetrack, the same was the opinion of the 2025 F1 drivers' championship leader, Oscar Piastri.

After yesterday's running, the Australian driver made it quite clear that the Maranello-based team was very much in the fight. In an interaction with Motorsport, he said:

"FP2, the soft tire was a little bit messy for me, but I think the potential is definitely there and the long runs look pretty solid as well. So yeah, an interesting first day and I think a lot of competition."

However, Piastri also made it known that his McLaren outfit was also looking in good shape.

"Yeah, a good first day, I think. Ferrari have looked very competitive, but I think we looked alright."

After the first 11 rounds of the 2025 F1 season, Oscar Piastri and Lando Norris are leading the Drivers' Championship. Piastri is sitting at the top with 216 points, whereas Norris is on 201. In the process of doing so, they have also amassed eight victories.

Taking into consideration that Ferrari has not won a single race in the ongoing campaign, it will be fascinating to see how Lewis Hamilton and Charles Leclerc will perform in tomorrow's Grand Prix. Qualifying will be key for all the top drivers.