McLaren remains the team to beat in Formula 1, but Max Verstappen’s victorious drive for Red Bull at the Japanese Grand Prix Sunday proves only excellence is good enough. 2nd and 3rd placed Lando Norris and Oscar Piastri still have the fastest all-round car for McLaren on the F1 grid.

Max Verstappen held off the McLaren duo of Lando Norris and Oscar Piastri to win the Japanese Grand Prix in brilliant style on Sunday.

It's all relative, isn't it. McLaren has come away from Japan as the biggest scorer with 33 points, extending its constructors' lead on Mercedes by 15. But F1 is about winning, and in truth the team should have scored another 1-2 here.