Oscar Piastri: McLaren win still possible with better track position

Lewis Hamilton may have claimed his first win behind the wheel of Ferrari machinery at the Chinese sprint race, but Oscar Piastri’s impressive drive to second place has given McLaren plenty of data to learn from as they head into qualifying later today and Sunday’s Grand Prix. After overtaking Max Verstappen, the Australian driver hopes to qualify in a better position to take advantage of the clean air available at the front of the pack.

After qualifying third for the sprint race behind Hamilton and Verstappen, the Papaya driver delivered a composed performance, taking second for the 19-lap campaign. 

“I think it was a really productive sprint, obviously. Finishing second is always a great result and I think I really learned a lot in that one,” Piastri reflected after the race. “As much as the result is nice, I think the way I got the result is an encouraging thing.”

His performance sits in stark contrast to that of team-mate Lando Norris, who started in sixth after a difficult qualifying session and dropped to eighth as he tackled tyre degradation in traffic. After a dominant showing in Melbourne, this result will be a surprise for the driver.

“We didn’t quite have enough pace for Lewis out front, but I think we’ve got some good ideas for this afternoon and tomorrow and see if we can go one spot better,” Piastri continued. 

When asked about his confidence for Sunday’s race based on his pace in traffic during the Sprint, Piastri responded with clarity: “Yes, hopefully we don’t have as much traffic though, that’s the plan. So, we’ll see what we can do this afternoon to start a bit higher and go from there.

“I think we’ve got good pace in the car. We’ve clearly got a lot of competition this weekend. The Ferraris look pretty rapid, so we’ve got to be on our best form.”

With the track recently resurfaced, tyres will be a large factor going into the Grand Prix. The data taken from today will do the Papaya team well on Sunday, but the opportunities will come at the front of the grid, so everything is still to play for in qualifying later today.