F1 News: Oscar Piastri "Frustrated" After Saudi Arabian GP Struggles - "Not Sure Fun Is The Word
In a challenging Saudi Arabian Grand Prix, Oscar Piastri of McLaren voiced his frustrations over difficulties in overtaking and the car's limitations. Despite these challenges, he managed to secure a notable P4 finish, whilst teammate Lando Norris finished P8 after an unlucky race.
Key takeaways:
- Piastri struggled to overtake Lewis Hamilton despite having fresher tyres.
- The Australian recognised that securing track position was crucial for his race.
- He believes the battle between McLaren and Mercedes is "very, very even" at this stage.
McLaren
Oscar Piastri, the young Australian driver for McLaren, had a challenging time at the Saudi Arabian Grand Prix, which left him feeling frustrated rather than entertained. Despite starting ahead of his teammate Lando Norris, Piastri found himself entangled in a battle with Lewis Hamilton's Mercedes.
While he managed to quickly overtake Fernando Alonso's Aston Martin in the early laps, Piastri became trapped behind Lewis who was making his car as wide as possible and faster in the straights. This tussle exposed some weaknesses in the MCL38, as Piastri admitted
"I'm not sure fun is the word I would use. Frustrating – yes. I mean, I think it kind of just showed a couple of weaknesses of ours definitely.
"I was very relieved when he boxed out of the way but just didn’t quite have enough on the straights mainly to get past.”
The Australian was also questioned regarding being stuck behind Hamilton for a number of laps, seemingly finding it impossible to get past:
“I was hoping he was going to pit about 15 laps before he did, but I think he started to struggle on the tyre because I was basically past him when he boxed, so yeah.
“I think he, you know, he had to pit at some stage. And that seemed like a good time to do.”
The McLaren was setup with high downforce, which saw the car excel in the first sector of the twisty track. But as it opened up to the high speed section, both drivers struggled with high drag. In fact, Norris was the slowest car on the grid in a straight line. Unsurprisingly, it was Oscar's track position that helped his race come together:
"I think qualifying made the difference today. I think Lewis showed that if we qualify behind them, there was a good chance we were going to be stuck behind them for the whole night."
Despite the struggles, Piastri remains optimistic about McLaren's competitiveness, believing that the battle between the team and Mercedes is "very, very even" at this stage, with both cars exhibiting different strengths and weaknesses.
"I think it's very, very tight between us. And yeah, we need to do some work to try and jump them and catch the two teams [Red Bull and Ferrari] ahead."
As the Formula 1 circus heads to Piastri's home race in Australia, the young driver remains grounded about McLaren's potential. The Woking-based team is solidly behind Red Bull and Ferrari, but there are opportunities to be had behind them.