Oscar Piastri delivered a dominant performance at the Spanish GP, converting a pole position into a composed and decisive victory. This marks his fifth win of the 2025 Formula 1 season and seventh overall.
Speaking in parc fermé after the race, the McLaren driver was full of praise for the team’s execution and resilience across a weekend that had not begun smoothly.
“Yeah, definitely. It was a bit of a surprise to see Max [Verstappen] try a three-stop, and it nearly worked for him. So, yeah, it was a great weekend overall, though,” Piastri said.
“I think the pace was really good. We could turn it on when we needed to. I’m just very proud of the work we’ve done this weekend.
“It wasn’t the best first practice, and then we got our stuff together. Yeah, it’s a nice way to bounce back from one of those. So, yeah, it’s been a superb weekend.”
From the moment the lights went out, Piastri had a clean getaway and controlled the race from the front despite strategic gambles from Red Bull and multiple mid-race incidents. Verstappen briefly looked a threat as the race evolved into a three-stop affair, but Piastri remained composed under pressure, particularly after the late-race Safety Car reshuffled the field.
Piastri satisfied with McLaren performan
Reflecting further on his Spanish GP performance, the Australian admitted he could not ask for more from himself or his team, especially with the Canadian GP ahead.
“Hard to complain. Very hard to complain. It’s been a great year, and this weekend’s been exactly the kind of weekend I was looking for.
“We executed everything we needed to when it counted, and that’s all you can ask for. So the team gave me a great car once again. It’s a lot of fun winning races at the moment, so I’ve been enjoying it, and I hope the team are too.
“So thanks to the crowd for being out here. It’s been a great weekend. A lot of support out here,” Piastri added, grinning. “A lot of traffic as well, but it’s the side of a lot of fans. So it’s nice to be here.”
Piastri’s thoughts on the Safety Car drama
Piastri also commented on the dramatic race restart after Antonelli’s retirement brought out the Safety Car on lap 55. With the field bunched up and Verstappen on the less favourable hard compound, Piastri managed the restart flawlessly, even if he didn’t feel it was his cleanest effort:
“I’ve seen Hülkenberg finish sixth, which is pretty impressive. So well done to him, I guess. But, yeah, my restart was okay from a time point of view.
“I’m not sure my rear tyres were very happy. I think I was wheelspinning in sixth gear. So not the cleanest of restarts, but it was good enough.
“And then just getting used to how much grip there was on low fuel again, it was like being back in qualifying. So that was a bit of an adjustment, but very well managed.”
Despite the late pressure from Lando Norris, Piastri never relinquished the lead and crossed the finish line over two seconds clear of his teammate, with Charles Leclerc rounding out the podium. As chaos reigned behind—including a collision between Verstappen and Russell that ultimately demoted the Red Bull driver to tenth—Piastri’s poised performance further solidified his championship credentials in what is shaping up to be a remarkable season.
