Oscar Piastri has certainly had an eventful first season in Formula One. After his decision to join McLaren was mired in controversy, Piastri has found himself going from the bottom of the grid to the top, nearly getting his first podium in Formula One and an impressive run in qualifying at Spa in particular.
In an eventful Dutch GP filled with rain and delays, Piastri finished a respectable P9, gaining 2 more points and continuing his self-proclaimed “baptism of fire” in his rookie season.
McLaren’s strategy calls left a lot to be desired at the weekend, and it certainly impacted both drivers in the early laps as they stayed out on dries too long. The Aussie didn’t help him himself after a huge lock-up of both front tyres when trying to pass Kevin Magnussen resulted in a trip to the pits.
Photo credit: McLaren Racing
“Yes, it was chaotic, definitely. To have two cars in the points, and in one piece, is a decent afternoon.
“I think there were maybe a few opportunities that we could have done a bit more with, also a couple of mistakes from my side that certainly didn’t help our cause.
“But a lot to learn from. For me, we’ve had a lot of crazy races, so it’s been a bit of a baptism of fire in my rookie season, but all part of the learning experience.”
Photo Credit: McLaren Racing
While finishing P9 looks fine on paper, it was definitely a rollercoaster weekend for Piastri. His Friday was rocky to say the least, having crashed in FP2 and potentially causing problems for the next 2 days.
“I didn’t help myself either with the crash in FP2. Every day this weekend has been a massive learning point.
“Of course, ideally, I wouldn’t put it (the car) in the wall to have to learn how much that would damage the rest of the weekend, but I certainly know how much it does now.
“So a few things that I definitely wish I could have had again, but overall, to get a couple of points on such a crazy afternoon is not too bad.”
After assisting in McLaren’s meteoric rise up the grid since the beginning of the season, Piastri says that he’s felt much better in the car compared to Bahrain and earlier races, and feels ready for the challenges ahead, using the last 9 races as a learning curve to move himself forward.
“The first part of the season, there were so many things I had to learn in terms of racing, in terms of still gelling with the car.
“I feel now I’m in a much more comfortable place with the car than I was at the start of the year.
“Just a couple of mistakes here and there, and certainly in races like this, the only way to learn from them and know what to do is by experiencing them.
“I feel it’s definitely been a learning curve in some areas, but I think the confidence, and my confidence in my ability, the car, and the team is still very high.”
