Oscar Piastri: « I thought it would be possible »
The race at Monza was marked by Charles Leclerc's victory, despite the McLaren threat. Oscar Piastri, who finished second, regretted his team's two-stop strategy. McLaren, in disagreement over the direction to take, remains 8 points behind Red Bull in the constructors' championship.
This Sunday’s race in Monza was the scene of many surprises. While Charles Leclerc emerged victorious in the Grand Prix, he was long under threat from the two McLarens. However, the two-stop strategy of the orange team put an end to the battle. At the front of the grid, the two teammates fought for positions on the podium. In the end, Oscar Piastri finished second in the Italian Grand Prix.
A disappointing result for the team
Lando Norris started the race in pole position. His teammate, Oscar Piastri, was in second place behind him on the grid. From the first few laps, the Australian took the lead in front of the British. While he managed to dominate for most of the race, the 39th lap changed everything. Charles Leclerc, the weekend’s winner, managed to take the lead after the pit stop of the two drivers. He who opted for a one-stop strategy, distanced himself from the teammates who never managed to catch up with him.
Oscar Piastri was quite disappointed after narrowly missing out on victory at the Monza Grand Prix. Despite a good performance in the race, the Australian driver had to settle for second place behind the Ferrari driver. Leaving him with a feeling of what could have been his victory. “I’m not going to lie, it hurts a lot,” he said in the post-race press conference. “We did a lot of good things today. In the position we were in, a pit stop seemed like a risky choice, but in the end, it was the right one.”
Although Oscar Piastri managed to overtake Carlos Sainz and get closer to the Monegasque leader, the Australian crossed the finish line with more than two seconds behind the Ferrari driver. A little later in the media conference, the young driver admitted that he still thought he could overtake Charles Leclerc until the end. “I thought catching Charles Leclerc would be difficult, but I thought it would be possible. With the pace I had at the beginning, I think I was catching up with him by two seconds per lap,” he confessed.
The strategy is partly to blame
On McLaren’s side, the race strategy did not work out. If the team is already at odds with the Piastri/Norris overtakes, it also seems to disagree within its own technical team. However, even though Oscar Piastri proposed a one-stop strategy like Charles Leclerc’s, they ultimately opted for a different option. A choice that the Australian driver does not approve of. When asked about it, Oscar Piastri admitted that in hindsight, the team could have made a different decision from the one chosen. “Everyone is a genius on Monday after the race… Unfortunately, today, we got it a bit wrong,” was heard.
During his race, as he tried to catch up with the Monegasque, the Australian had to deal with several complications. On the track, he notably met Lance Stroll, who obstructed him and caused him to lose a few seconds on his lap time. During interviews, he was particularly critical of the Canadian. Nevertheless, Oscar Piastri acknowledges that he couldn’t have done much more with McLaren and is already satisfied with the second place. « It was a bit painful, but I think everything had to go perfectly with this last set of hard tires, and in the end, it simply wasn’t enough. », he concludes.
Today, McLaren is only 8 points behind Red Bull in the drivers’ championship. If both McLarens manage to finish ahead of the two Red Bull drivers in each race, Red Bull could possibly lose its Formula 1 team championship title. Meanwhile, Oscar Piastri is trying to catch up with Charles Leclerc in the drivers’ championship. With a 20-point gap and one more victory for the Monegasque, the goal seems achievable. But with 8 races remaining, the driver still has a chance.
