F1 champion calls for McLaren boss to practice 'empathy' after tone-deaf radio comment to Oscar Piastri

Formula 1 world champion Nico Rosberg has slammed McLaren CEO Zak Brown for his tone-deaf comments over Oscar Piastri's radio as the Australian watched his teammate and closest rival snatch the 2025 drivers' championship.

Tom Stallard, Piastri's race engineer, consoled the 24-year-old as he crossed the finish line, admitting he understood that the Australian must have mixed feelings on losing the title.

A jubilant Brown loudly interrupted the exchange to hand Piastri a message of support.

"What a season, what a season," Brown said over the radio.

READ MORE: Norris wins first F1 title as Piastri falls just short

READ MORE: 'Too late': Archer barb that ignited classic Smith moment

READ MORE: Boycott unloads on England after Ashes 'horror show'

"You're a star. Seven wins. We love ya. We'll do it again next year. Thank you Oscar for everything you've done. What a year.

"Oscar, very proud of you. Awesome. What a team player. We go again next year. See you on the podium."

Although the words were said in good spirits, Rosberg believed that the McLaren boss needed to practice "empathy" in conveying his team's communication to a driver who had just lost the drivers' championship.

"That's his most horrible moment in his racing career," Rosberg explained on the Sky Sports F1 broadcast.

"Maybe Zak could have had a little more empathy there, rather than celebrating.

"He could have said, 'Next year will be your year,' but it's difficult for Zak because he's so ecstatic at the same time."

Piastri was a graceful loser in the 2025 season, congratulating eventual 2025 champion Norris in parc ferme and calling his teammate a "deserving champion."

As the curtain closes on the 2025 season in Abu Dhabi, Norris dethroned rival Max Verstappen by the slim margin of two points to win the title. Piastri had to settle for third after Verstappen's eventual victory in the season finale pipped him in the standings.

Fittingly, the title protagonists locked out the top three positions on the grid - Verstappen from Norris from Piastri - for their showdown on Monday morning AEDT.

Together, they've produced one of the sports' most memorable and unpredictable championship battles in the modern F1 era.

When asked about the dynamic between him and his McLaren teammate and if it was irrevocably changed after this battle, Piastri was blunt, saying Norris "wasn't Superman" and he expected "full fairness" from his team next season.

"No, I don't think so, I don't think that will change anything," the Aussie driver said.

"For me he's obviously had a great season this year and a deserving champion, but he's still Lando Norris - it's not like he's become Superman.

"I don't think things will change with that. I'm expecting full fairness from the team and kind of equality going forward and I don't have any concerns that that will change at all."

McLaren attempted an unusual strategy for Piastri, leaving him out on track for over 40 laps on hard rubber. Piastri spoke after the race to the Sky Sports broadcast and highlighted their "gamble on strategy" to outlast the rest of the grid.

"I think today, we gave it everything, we tried a bit of a gamble on strategy, tried absolutely everything to try and win the race and give ourselves the best chance to to win the championship, but ultimately we didn't," Piastri said.

"Didn't have the pace today. I gave it absolutely everything.

"When things have been good this year, I've felt unstoppable at points and to even be able to get to that point is, a pretty cool feeling to have.

"There's been plenty of times where that's not been the case and I think I've learned a lot of lessons on how to deal with tough moments, adversity from different directions, so I think ultimately I've learned a lot about myself and I've obviously been in championship battles before in the junior categories.

"But in Formula 1, it's got a little bit of extra to it, so I've learned plenty about that this year and I think that'll only help me go forward."

A central narrative of 2025 has been his loss of a runaway lead in the early stages of the season, that coincided with Norris' attack.

Piastri vowed that he would learn from his mistakes in the latter half of 2025 and aimed to find himself in another fight for top honours in Formula 1.

"It's been a fun challenge [fighting Norris]," he added.

"Obviously at certain points, maybe it doesn't feel that fun, but I think it's been a really enjoyable season for both of us and I'm saying that as the person that's not champion.

"I've learned plenty of things along the way, I think even the last three years, I've learned things every weekend from what Lando does and it's nice to know that it goes both ways.

"There's plenty more years to come of intense weekends and tight battles, but ultimately I think that's made both of us better drivers and I think in some ways contributed to the success that both of us have had this year."

Team principal Andrea Stella had a more conservative way to congratulate Piastri, weighing in on the Australian's rapid career trajectory.

Stella argued that in three seasons, Piastri has become a formidable force and the question is not if, but when he will be crowned a world champion.

"Lando is the champion, [but] effectively we could have had two champions this year," Stella said.

"The gap between the two was so small. After qualifying, I think it was 30 milliseconds – that was the whole story of a season.

"Oscar was a worthwhile champion, and he was a worthwhile champion in his third season in Formula 1.

"He learnt so rapidly, he had a couple of races where he struggled a bit in the famous low-grip tracks, [but] he learnt very rapidly what to do and became immediately competitive again.

"His trajectory is phenomenal, and definitely we have a future multiple world champion in Oscar."

Although all three drivers in the title fight had superb seasons, each with seven races apiece as they landed in Abu Dhabi, it could only be one that would rise above the rest.

And Norris was the one who found the late momentum at exactly the right time to get it done.