Oscar Piastri, who experienced a disastrous weekend during the last race in Baku, admits that he can no longer afford such performances. The Australian has been leading the drivers’ championship for some time, but now feels the pressure from teammate Lando Norris and rival Max Verstappen. In the run-up to the Singapore Grand Prix, a decisive race for the title fight, Piastri explains what he has learned.
After a crash in the qualifiers, Piastri started from ninth place in Baku. After a false start, he misjudged the narrow turns of the street circuit and dropped out in the first round. As a result, his lead over Norris shrank to 25 points. Max Verstappen, who won his second consecutive race in Azerbaijan, reduced his deficit to 69 points. This suggests that the Red Bull driver is cautiously emerging as a title contender.
“We don’t want weekends like Baku and we know we can’t afford them,” Piastri said ahead of the Singapore Grand Prix. “Of course, I’ve learned some hard lessons on my part, but I think we’ve also seen as a team how we can improve our weekends. So that’s always important. Baku proved how quickly everything can change, but at the same time reminds us of what has made us so successful this season. As long as we focus on that, our title chances only increase.”
Risks
Regarding his own performance, Piastri admitted that he has learned valuable lessons about taking risks. “I mainly learn from the risks I have taken,” he stated. “There is nothing revolutionary that I need to or will change,” he added. “In 16 out of the 17 races, my choices turned out well. I just need to keep focusing on the things that are going well. As for the rest, I attribute Baku to a few mistakes.”
Piastri emphasized that he can let go of those mistakes quite quickly. “It was relatively easy to move on,” the Australian believed. “In a way, it’s easier to find areas for improvement when you make so many mistakes. That makes the reflection quite simple, so I can now comfortably get back to work. I certainly didn’t have to dwell on it for too long. Of course, I learned my lesson, but I approach this weekend just like any other weekend,” he concluded determinedly.
