Championship leader Oscar Piastri, who has been praised multiple times this year for his calm demeanor and clinical racing style, faltered during the Azerbaijan Grand Prix. After a disappointing qualification, he made a false start from P9, only to write off his car in the wall. It was a disastrous weekend for the Australian, who is far from securing his first title. McLaren team boss Andrea Stella defends Piastri’s performance, stating that all great drivers have had their bad days.
Stella, who has worked closely with champions like Fernando Alonso and Michael Schumacher in the past, understands that Piastri also makes mistakes. “I have worked with drivers who have won multiple titles,” said the Italian to the media in Baku. “Even the most dominant drivers in the history of Formula 1, like Michael Schumacher, have had these kind of disastrous weekends. It’s simply a learning experience.”
It Happens to the Best
“For some reason, drivers sometimes struggle,” Stella explained. “And if you then misjudge the amount of grip, you are heavily penalized. This was just a one-off setback for what has probably been the most solid driver of this season,” Stella referred to Piastri. “A weekend where things don’t go as you want and you ultimately have to process a loss. That’s not a surprise or something we should worry about. This has happened to virtually all champions – even those with the best track record.””The mistakes we’ve seen from Piastri are absolutely unusual,” Stella admitted. “At the start, he was simply too eager, but I’m sure we won’t see that again. As for the crash, he simply misjudged the available grip. We don’t yet know exactly why, but that’s not really relevant. One of Piastri’s strongest attributes is how quickly he learns, how quickly he improves, and how he comes back stronger. That’s why he’s always been so successful, and we’re going to see a lot more of that in his Formula 1 career. Let’s just wait and see how the rest of the season unfolds.”
