Oscar Piastri has reflected on an incredible 12 months, as the McLaren man heads into a Drivers’ Championship battle with Lando Norris.
Piastri finished second to Norris at the Hungarian GP but won the Belgian GP, epitomising the back-and-forth between the McLaren drivers this season. Piastri’s victory at Spa was his sixth in 2025. The Australian currently holds a nine-point lead over his teammate in the Drivers’ Championship, as Formula 1 heads into its summer break.
Speaking to the F1 website, Piastri has spoken on his development as a driver, and hopes to close out 2025 in style after the break.
Piastri reflects on an up-and-down 2024
Piastri took his first F1 victory at the 2024 Hungarian GP, and added to it two months later with a second victory in Baku. However, amidst a 2025 season where the Australian has only missed out on a podium twice, his 2024 featured far more disappointment.
“Last year, I felt like I had some weekends that were very strong and felt like I had enough to win races on my good days. But there were a lot of average and sometimes bad days in between.”
On a much improved 2025 leading to his title challenge
Piastri is a few points away from besting his 2024 points total with 10 races to spare. The Australian has improved in every season on the grid since his 2023 debut, and boasts 12 podiums thus far this campaign. The McLaren man feels he has improved as a driver since 2024, with a focus on all areas reaping rewards.
“This year has been full of a lot more good days. I have improved as a driver, but I think I’ve been able to get closer to what I think I’m capable of more often.
“That’s been the biggest thing. It’s not come from one specific area, it’s come from looking at lots of different things. Being able to execute what I think is my best more and more often, that’s been the difference.”
Piastri not looking to sit back in Drivers’ Championship battle
F1 looks set for its first intra-team Drivers’ Championship battle since Lewis Hamilton and Nico Rosberg locked horns in 2016. While Norris and Piastri may not clash as much as the Mercedes drivers did, Piastri is looking to avoid complacency and errors during the second half of the season.
“You need to be faster than everyone around you and you need to make the least mistakes possible. That aspect doesn’t really change. Like I said, it’s great to be consistent, but if you’re consistently being beaten, that’s not a recipe for a championship. It’s a balancing act of both.
“Obviously, if you’re a robot, you’d be able to be as fast as possible and make zero mistakes, but we’re all humans, so that’s not possible. There is going to be an element of minimising mistakes, but you need to be fast at the same time, and you can’t afford to sit back. If you try to take that approach, you’ll end up being beaten.”
