McLaren driver Oscar Piastri leads the drivers’ championship for the first time in his Formula 1 career.
It’s never a position that comes easily for any driver as Oscar Piastri discovered at the Saudi Arabian Grand Prix.
Max Verstappen is one of the toughest opponents any Formula 1 driver can have.
Verstappen is unbelievably fast and he’s not a fan of giving up a position on the track if he doesn’t have to.
Piastri’s McLaren teammate Lando Norris has had plenty of run-ins with Verstappen over the year, but it was the Australian’s turn to go head-to-head with the four-time world champion in Jeddah.
The 24-year-old got a better launch off the grid and was marginally in front at the apex of turn one, with Verstappen dashing off the track, cutting turn two and retaining the lead.
Fans weren’t happy with Verstappen’s five-second penalty, but his prolonged pit stop handed the lead to Piastri and he went on to take the fifth victory of his career as a result.
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Oscar Piastri says Max Verstappen was ‘a little bit too close’ at the Saudi Arabian Grand Prix
Piastri was being interviewed by David Coulthard on the grid, via Sky Sports F1 (20/4 7:31 pm) after winning the race and asked to talk through his race, but most importantly, the opening lap.
The McLaren driver said: “It was a pretty tough race, very, very happy to have obviously won and made the difference at the start.
“I made my case into turn one and yeah, that was enough. It was really tricky to follow out there, I couldn’t really stay with Max at the end of the first stint, just chewed up my tyres and then, yeah, the clear air was nice after the pit stop.
“A great race, we did the parts we needed to right. Still need a bit more I think, Max was a little bit too close for my liking, but yeah, a great race and a great weekend.”
The Australian was then asked about his turn one battle with Verstappen and continued: “Yeah, once I got on the inside, I wasn’t coming out of turn one in second.
“I tried my best, obviously the stewards had to get involved, but I thought I was plenty far enough up and in the end, that’s what got me the race.
“So, very happy with all the work we’ve been doing on starts and that’s what won us the race today.”
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Oscar Piastri takes step ahead of Lando Norris in the F1 drivers’ championship battle
Piastri now leads the drivers’ championship for the first time in his career, and has opened up a 10-point advantage over Norris.
Norris’ mistake in qualifying ultimately cost him, and while he recovered to fourth place, CEO Zak Brown admitted when speaking to Sky Sports after the Grand Prix that the best result the team expected for the 25-year-old for P3.
| RANK | DRIVER | TEAM | POINTS |
| 1 | Oscar Piastri | McLaren | 25 |
| 2 | Max Verstappen | Red Bull | 18 |
| 3 | Charles Leclerc | Ferrari | 15 |
| 4 | Lando Norris | McLaren | 12 |
| 5 | George Russell | Mercedes | 10 |
| 6 | Kimi Antonelli | Mercedes | 8 |
| 7 | Lewis Hamilton | Ferrari | 6 |
| 8 | Carlos Sainz | Williams | 4 |
| 9 | Alex Albon | Williams | 2 |
| 10 | Isack Hadjar | RB | 1 |
Verstappen is another two points further back from Norris, and although George Russell was worried about his Mercedes’ tyres during the final few laps of the race, he’s not out of the conversation either.
Piastri seems unfazed by anything that he faces currently.
He was more animated on the team radio moaning about Lance Stroll and pointing out a distracting red light at turn 10 than he was about Verstappen’s track limits violation.
