Lando Norris has been given the edge over McLaren team-mate Oscar Piastri when it comes to coping with the pressure of this season's F1 drivers' championship battle.
For the majority of this year, Piastri came across as the cooler, calmer and more collected of the duo, in contrast to Norris, who highlighted his errors and bemoaned certain aspects of a race weekend that went against him.
Following Piastri's victory in the Dutch Grand Prix, in which Norris retired, the Australian emerged with a 34-point cushion. At that stage, he appeared more likely to go on and beat the British driver in their fight to land a maiden title.
Over the past six grands prix, however, Piastri has struggled, making numerous errors, whilst Norris has turned a corner in terms of composure, and has barely put a wheel out of place.
That has resulted in him opening up a 24-point gap with three races remaining, and 83 points available.
Alan Jones, the last Australian F1 champion in 1980, does not believe Piastri has succumbed to the pressure of late, but he does feel Norris is in the ascendancy in that area.
"He [Piastri] is a pretty level-headed bloke, and I think he deals with pressure very well," said Jones, speaking on ABC's Summer Grandstand podcast.
"In fact, six or seven races ago, I said that if it ever came to a mental battle between him and his team-mate, I'd back him. As it turns out, Lando is the one coping with it a little better."
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Off-days do happen
Jones, 79, has defended Piastri for the low moments he has encountered since his last victory in Zandvoort.
In Azerbaijan, there were crashes in qualifying and the race, and in Mexico City, Piastri was considerably off the pace compared to Norris, who was imperious en route to victory.
"We all have off days," said Jones. "I don't know whether Oscar had a bit of an off day there [in Mexico], and that weekend.
"But there are times when you even question yourself. You think, 'Gee, have I lost the ability to go quick?' It just happens every now and again. You have a little bit of trouble getting your act together, putting it together and gelling it all up. And maybe that was just a weekend for Oscar."
As to whether it can make a difference, he replied: "It can, obviously. If you're getting two or $3 million a race, I'd like to be able to think you're above all that, but you're not, unfortunately.
"Every now and again, as I said before, you do have the odd weekend where you just can't get it together, and you don't even know why. You start doubting yourself, and then the next grand prix, you're up there on the front row again."
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