%2FGettyImages-2298359584.webp&w=1200)
Here is the raw truth about a messy afternoon in the tropics: Oscar Piastri brought his machine home in sixth place, exactly where he started, but the result masks a chaotic race where McLaren simply lacked the raw speed of their rivals.
Heavy rainfall delayed the start, and when the lights finally went out, the team made the bold call to bolt medium tyres onto the cars. It was the wrong gamble. The track was too wet for slicks, forcing Piastri to pit at the end of the very first lap to swap for intermediates, which dumped him backwards through the field.
We need to improve. We know that, and we'll try our best to make sure we try and improve,
From there, it was a race of recovery. The driver from Melbourne fought his way forward, making a second stop for hard tyres during the first Safety Car phase, and even managed to narrowly escape being collected when his team mate Lando Norris ran off track during a late Safety Car period. Piastri admitted that final Safety Car was particularly frustrating, as he was closing in on Charles Leclerc at a rapid rate before proceedings were neutralized.
Despite the strategic missteps and the tricky conditions, Piastri felt good about his own driving, stating he was reasonably happy on a personal note and felt he did a pretty good job. But he was brutally honest about the machinery beneath him. They just were not quick enough.
When pressed on how McLaren stack up against the front-running squads, the Australian pointed straight to Red Bull as the benchmark, noting that whatever updates they brought to Baku have transformed them into an absolute force. Max Verstappen's recent form proves it. As for McLaren, Piastri places them in a similar ballpark to Ferrari, but that is a ballpark that sits well away from fighting for actual race wins.
“We need to improve. We know that, and we'll try our best to make sure we try and improve,” Piastri concluded.
