Oscar Piastri: « if, close to victory, it hurts a little »
The young Australian driver finished on the podium for the fourth time in his career. Second place was hard to swallow for the driver who was aiming for victory and finished very close to George Russell.
For Oscar Piastri, Saturday’s qualifying sessions did not go very well. While he had managed to set the third best time of the session, his time had been canceled by the stewards for track limits violation. A decision that had been challenged by McLaren, but was ultimately dismissed.
The Australian driver started Sunday’s race in seventh place. After a few accidents at the front of the grid and a good performance, Oscar Piastri was able to finish the race in second position. An unexpected result, but one that echoes his teammate’s accident towards the end of the race.
When it’s that close, you can’t help but be a little disappointed.
With a dejected face, Oscar Piastri stepped out of his car for the first time. A good position at the end of the race, but one that could have led him to victory according to him. “There have been a lot of ‘if only’ and ‘maybe’ obviously since yesterday. I know it’s only my fourth podium in F1, but being so close to a victory does sting a little, but [we] really got some good points,” he emphasized. “Obviously, I think in the second half of the race, we were quite performant and I’m happy with another podium, just when it’s so close, one can’t help but be a little disappointed,” he explained to David Coulthard’s microphone just after the race.
More rested after his first post-race interview, Oscar Piastri returned to the press conference to talk about how he felt after the Grand Prix. “I mostly feel happy. I think in the first part, I didn’t make as much progress as I would have liked […] But after starting seventh, obviously it’s a good turn of events. Yes, I’m quite happy.”
A difficult Grand Prix for Piastri
The young driver who had started quite far from the beginning of the grid had quickly found himself between Leclerc and Perez. The drivers who had respectively started in sixth and eighth position had several contacts with Oscar Piastri during the race. « I didn’t really see where Checo had slipped in, but I didn’t think he was so far alongside Charles. But, obviously, the three of us met at the apex. So yeah, I was pretty lucky, I think there was a bit of damage but nothing major. Then, I had a few more contacts with Checo in the lap » explained the driver in the press conference.
A chance, therefore, for Oscar Piastri, who was able to continue after his contact without stopping at the pits. A chance that was not shared by Charles Leclerc, who had to stop to change parts on his car. In total during the weekend, the Australian driver will have brought 25 points to the team. A comeback that almost allows him to catch up with Perez in the championship.
