McLaren handed 'so close' verdict in Oscar Piastri-Lando Norris title fight

Former F1 driver Jolyon Palmer has insisted it is "so close" between Oscar Piastri and Lando Norris, and judged that neither driver has more momentum than the other. 

Piastri leads Norris in the drivers' title by a marginal eight points, with Max Verstappen in third sitting 69 points adrift ahead of the second half of the season.

As a result of the four-time world champion's deficit, it is expected to be an all-McLaren scrap for the championship this year. 

No team has consistently taken the fight to the Woking-based outfit, who boast a 238-point lead in the constructors' standings. 

Due to the huge advantage, Piastri and Norris have been freed to fight for a maiden drivers' crown. Both drivers have secured 10 podiums this year, whilst Piastri has one more victory at five. 

Very little has separated the pair all season, although Palmer pointed out that the title fight would have looked different if Piastri had won in Austria and Silverstone.

Asked on the F1 Nation podcast whether Piastri or Norris has the momentum going into the second half of the season, Palmer said: "It's 50/50, it's beautifully set at an eight-point difference and a 50/50 split. That's where we're at.

"Lando has pulled it back in the last couple of weekends, but those weekends have been really a toss up, whether Oscar is going to take this right away from him or Lando narrows the gap. 

"So you've got Austria, they're wheel to wheel for 20 laps. Oscar takes the lead momentarily, and if he holds on to that lead, the gap is going to balloon out. Instead, Lando manages to out-race him and then win the race. 

"And then Silverstone, the penalty that I think is really harsh on Oscar, it's, again, it's a tough decision that falls towards Lando. 

"So the performance gap between them is so close, but the last two races have just bought it down. But I still think that performance wise, it's a split between them."