Oscar Piastri admitted that it was a tough qualifying session at the Singapore Grand Prix, one marked by personal frustrations despite some improvements throughout the day. The McLaren driver, who has shown moments of brilliance this season, struggled to execute his lap fully when it mattered, leaving him dissatisfied with his final position on the grid.
He had been struggling a lot throughout practice, finding it difficult to get within half a second of teammate Lando Norris.
Reflecting on the session, Piastri candidly shared the difficulties he faced. “Through practice, it was a big struggle, to be honest. I just had no pace,” he explained.
However, the Australian did feel some improvement come qualifying, and he looked a front row contender.
“Through qualifying, I felt quite comfortable. I was feeling much better with the car, and in Q2, it was strong.”
Despite the progress, Piastri’s laps in Q3 didn’t come together as he had hoped as it all went wrong in S3 when he was four hundreths away from Norris through the first two sectors.
“Both my laps were terrible,” he admitted.
“The last one was looking good and a little bit quicker than what I’d managed in Q2, which would have put me well in the fight. I just had a bit of a moment towards the end of the lap, and with these tyres this weekend, if you have one little moment, it destroys your lap. Very frustrating.”
Piastri’s struggle was compounded by the challenge of tyre management, an issue that affected many drivers on the grid.
When asked whether he had overworked the tyres, Piastri remarked, “No, I think it was just that one moment. I felt like I had used them earlier in the lap, but not crazily. Just out of 14, I had a massive amount of wheelspin in 16 and 17t. Disappointing.”
Tyre management was a theme throughout the session, with Piastri acknowledging just how difficult it had been.
“It’s been very tough this weekend. It always is tough to manage the tyres, even after one lap, which is frustrating,” he said.
“This weekend has been another step on top of that. I think one of my laps in Q1 or Q2, you have one small moment early in the lap, and the rest of the lap is a disaster.
“Even if you have it at the end of the lap, it still turns into a disaster. It’s sometimes frustrating in qualifying.
“We can’t really push everything to the limit because if you overstep it, you try and take one step forward, and you take three back. But it’s not like it’s something new, and it’s not like it’s something different for me compared to everyone else.”
Piastri did not shy away from taking responsibility for his performance, admitting that he simply “didn’t do a good enough job today with respect to the tyres.” Despite the setbacks, he showed no signs of dwelling on his performance, adding, “It’s the same for everybody. I just haven’t done a good enough job today.”
The contrast between his side of the garage and teammate Lando Norris was evident, with Piastri acknowledging that his journey through the weekend had been more challenging.
“We’ve had a few set-up differences across the cars for the weekend. We’ve gradually come closer. I’ve been feeling much more comfortable with it today,” he explained.
“Even if FP3, the gap was big, I felt in a much better place. Through qualifying, honestly, I felt comfortable. It was just the execution of my lap was not good enough.”
Despite personal disappointment, Piastri refused to see his role as simply supporting Norris. “I’m not out there to qualify to help Lando. I’m out there to qualify for the best that I can and the best for the team,” he said.
“Naturally, if I’m right behind Lando, then it helps him. That’s obviously not the case today. But it’s much more frustrating for myself, obviously frustrating for the team.”
Looking ahead to the race, Piastri remains cautiously optimistic. “The race pace should be good,” he said, though he admitted the Marina Bay circuit isn’t the easiest track for overtaking.
“We’ll try our best. I’ll see what I can do.”
