Piastri: « It was one of the most difficult races of my career »

Oscar Piastri scored an important victory at the Saudi Arabian Grand Prix, his third of the season and the fifth of his career. With a decisive start against Max Verstappen, the Australian took command of a grueling race that he managed to control until the end. He thus takes the lead in the championship, ahead of his teammate Lando Norris and Verstappen.

A decisive departure

From the start, Piastri got off to a better start than Verstappen. The McLaren driver positioned himself on the inside of the first corner, forcing the Dutchman to go wide. This maneuver led to an investigation by the stewards, who ultimately handed a five-second penalty to the Dutch driver for leaving the track and gaining an advantage.

« Once I was inside, I wasn’t coming out of the first corner in second position. I did my best and obviously the stewards had to intervene, but I thought I was far enough ahead and ultimately that’s what won us the race », said Piastri after his victory.

After the restart following the accident between Tsunoda and Gasly at turn four, Verstappen maintained the lead of the race. However, the gap with Piastri was not concerning during this initial phase of the race.

A well-executed pit stop

On the 20th lap, McLaren brought Piastri into the pits, a stop that wasn’t the fastest, but enough to allow him to take the race lead. Coming out behind Lewis Hamilton, the Australian made a bold overtaking move on the seven-time world champion in a cloud of dust off the racing line, unlike his teammate who struggled with the same maneuver. The clean air was pleasant after the pit stop, it was a clean race and we did what we needed to do correctly, summarized Piastri.

When Verstappen stopped on the 22nd lap, taking advantage of his pit stop to serve his penalty, Piastri found himself with a three-second lead over the Dutchman, a gap he maintained until the end of the race.

A grueling race

The heat and humidity of Jeddah made this race particularly physically demanding for the drivers. I’m looking for a couch, it was quite a difficult race. I’m very happy to have won, I made the difference at the start and defended my position at the first turn and that was enough, commented Piastri, relieved to have finished it.

He added: « It was really difficult to keep up on the track, I couldn’t really stay with Max Verstappen at the end of the first stint and I just worn out my tires. One of our biggest improvements this week was the drink system that worked. It’s always a tough race here, it’s a bit later in the year so I think it’s a bit hotter and a bit more humid, it’s definitely one of the toughest races I’ve had in my career, so I’m happy to have been able to win it. »

A very competitive start to the championship

This victory, the third of the season for Piastri, puts him at the top of the world championship with 99 points. His teammate Lando Norris (89), leader before this race, had to settle for fourth place after an accident in qualifying that relegated him to tenth position on the grid.

Before the race, Zak Brown, the CEO of McLaren, had anticipated that Piastri would be able to compete with Verstappen. “I think Oscar will attack Max, that’s for sure. The race is long, so if he has an opportunity in the first corner, he will try it,” he said. “The podium was not out of reach for Lando,” he added. His predictions proved accurate, confirming McLaren’s strong form, with two drivers capable of fighting for both the drivers’ and constructors’ titles.

Piastri, now with five F1 victories, equals Norris, who nonetheless has 82 more races under his belt. This strengthens the balance within the team but also intensifies the internal rivalry. However, in Jeddah, it was mainly the pace of Verstappen’s RB21 that concerned the Australian: « We missed a little something, Max [Verstappen] was a bit too close for our liking, but it was an excellent race and a great weekend », concluded the winner of the day.