A season that has shocked us all in recent weeks with Max Verstappen re-emerging as a genuine championship contender, but perhaps even more surprising is Oscar Piastri’s decline in form.
The Australian has been unperturbed for most of this season. A ninth place in the season opener in Melbourne was achieved by a brilliant move past Lewis Hamilton on the final lap after rain forced him out of contention, followed by an impressive podium and win from China to Monza with only one stoppage, followed by a fourth place in Canada.
So why hasn’t Piastri been on the podium since finishing third in Italy?
Things felt like an anomaly in Azerbaijan at the time, with an unstable weekend leading to a vicious cycle of jump starts and first-lap retirements as Piastri tried to make up for his earlier mistakes. However, Singapore regained some form of form and outran Lando Norris in qualifying, finishing in first place, two seconds behind his team-mate, despite a near lineout.
Particularly notable were the last two rounds at the Circuit of the Americas and Mexico City, where a battle between the two McLaren drivers, who had previously waxed and waned within a tenth of a second each time, gave Norris a huge advantage.
McLaren team principal Andrea Stella has one explanation that certainly fits with the low grip nature of the weekend in Mexico.
“After qualifying, we thoroughly reviewed everything with Oscar in terms of data, comments and video,” Stella said. “And I think we were able to extract some important information in terms of how we need to drive the car in the special low-grip conditions that we face here in Mexico. So Austin will be a similar situation.”
“And it seems like in this regime you have to drive the car in a way that accommodates the fact that the car can skid a lot and slide and (still) produce lap times. And this isn’t necessarily the way Oscar naturally feels he’s producing lap times.”
Stella’s balancing act between Norris (left) and Piastri has recently taken a new turn. Andy Horn/Getty Images
Before qualifying in Mexico, this was a summary that didn’t fully sit well with Piastri’s team, who felt the gap to Austin was telling. A year ago, Piastri crossed the line six seconds behind Norris, showing he could handle similar conditions. However, this time he was 22 seconds late.
But this is a different McLaren car than a year ago, and while Stella wants to remember Piastri’s growth curve by pointing out that it is only his third year in F1, he says the Australian has already found ways to adapt his driving style to counter the struggles.
“We identified some things we could do with the car and we identified some things he could do with driving,” Stella said. “I think Oscar should be very proud of himself for how he handled the transition (from qualifying to racing).
“In the race we saw him apply this. He definitely had competitive pace (than in qualifying), but it’s a bit of a shame that he wasn’t in a position to take full advantage of this pace because he couldn’t find a way out of the traffic. He spent the whole race looking at the gearbox of the car in front of him.
“But it’s important for Oscar to go through this kind of experience where he learns new tools to add to his toolbox, because that’s how he becomes the most complete version of an F1 driver.”
“This is also important for the next four races, where we will also encounter different conditions, so we need to prepare for all of them. But I think Oscar should be very proud and happy with his race.”
While Piastri continues to slump, his teammates are getting stronger. Rudy Kaleseborg/Getty Images
Stella also said that the level of dominance Norris showed in Mexico City highlighted Piastri’s struggles, but that it didn’t come out of nowhere.
“This is not the first time Lando has performed at this level. He was very convincing here,” Stella said. “I think he was essentially the fastest in every session. He was able to make the most of the performance and strength of the car.”
“In a way, these special low-grip conditions are a perfect fit. It’s a natural way to extract lap times, almost the opposite of Oscar’s characteristics. And I think that will only strengthen Lando’s confidence, which will be important for the last four races.”
“But I think both Lando and Oscar will go into the last four races with reason to be confident, and I think the team will also go into the last four races with a better understanding of how to get consistent performance out of the car, because in the last few races before Mexico we have left the performance in the garage at times.”
Piastri himself admitted on Sunday night in Mexico that the past two weeks have been tough for him to wrap his head around as he has had to adapt his driving style, and the 24-year-old appears to accept there are ways to get more power out of the car. But he’s also right to point out that “for the remaining 19 races, the way I drive is working pretty well.”
His struggles in Austin were a real surprise, and with the two races happening back to back, Piastri had little time to try and get through the race, heading to the track in Mexico City, where it seemed likely that it would be more difficult to make any modifications.
In contrast, Interlagos come into the match after a two-week break, during which time Piastri will be able to not only dig into the details, but also reset. Piastri’s immense strength has been in the past in responding surprisingly quickly to such challenges, but the difference this time is that he is doing so under the even more intense circumstances of a title fight.
At last year’s tournament in Brazil, Piastri matched Norris and played second fiddle, staying true to his teammate’s championship hopes. Next weekend, he plans to repeat his habit of rapid improvement while aiming for exactly the same hope.
Given Piastri’s short F1 career so far, he will and will need to bounce back in Brazil. COTA and Mexico City can be viewed as a separate pair, but three consecutive difficult weekends would indicate a much more serious trend.
