'Strange to get my head around': Oscar Piastri reveals 'major' driving change to combat slump
Updated . First published at
Plagued by a recent downturn in form, Aussie Oscar Piastri has revealed he has been forced to drive "very differently" over the past few difficult grand prix.
Following his fifth-place finish in Mexico, Piastri surrendered his championship lead to his McLaren teammate, Lando Norris, who took a dominant lights-to-flag victory on Monday morning (AEDT).
With just four rounds left, Norris has taken a one-point championship lead.
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Oscar Piastri cuts a disappointed figure following the Mexican Grand Prix. Peter Fox via Getty Images
Meanwhile, fellow rival Max Verstappen's third-place finish keeps him in contention, sitting 36 points adrift of Norris.
Piastri had held the lead in the drivers' standings for six months, since winning the Saudi Arabian Grand Prix back in April. He has been on a difficult run of form in recent Grands Prix, failing to reach the podium in his last four races.
While Piastri salvaged some points and climbed two places to finish fifth after a rocky start, his effort was not enough to deny Norris the championship lead.
Speaking post-race, Piastri admitted his usual driving technique is no longer working as effectively and, in a bid to combat his ongoing slump, attempted to gather data by implementing a different driving style.
However, this effort was hindered because he was stuck in dirty air for much of the race.
"The whole race I was right behind someone, and just struggling in dirty air," he said.
"For me, the biggest thing is trying to learn the things I wanted to learn today.
"Yesterday, it became obvious after the [qualifying] session that there were a few things I needed to change pretty majorly about how I was driving.
"Today was about trying to limit the damage and trying to learn some things. If I made some progress with that, then I'm happy."
Oscar Piastri at the Mexican Grand Prix. Jakub Porzycki/NurPhoto via Getty Images
Faced with the sudden shift in the car's required driving characteristics, Piastri admitted he had either driven incorrectly for the current conditions or simply failed to adapt when necessary.
"I've had to drive very differently the last couple of weekends, or I have not driven differently when I should have," he said.
"That has been a little bit strange to get my head around because I've been driving the same as I have all year, but these last couple of weekends, the car or the tyres or something has required quite a different way of driving, and I've just not really gone to that.
"[I] tried a few things to try to change things up today. Once we analyse if it's effective or not, we'll hopefully see some progress."
McLaren has not run a major upgrade since debuting a new floor at July's British Grand Prix.
Piastri had previously opted not to use new front suspension components available to both papaya drivers since the Canadian Grand Prix, as he was content with his car's setup.
The Melburnian insisted that his current loss of pace is not a car-related problem, emphasising that he has not lost confidence in his driving ability.
Oscar Piastri in action during the Mexican Grand Prix. LAT Images
"The car has obviously not changed for a while now," he said.
"It's nothing to do with the car. Given how the pace has differentiated the past couple of races, clearly Lando's found it a bit easier to just dial into that, and I haven't. Plenty of analysis to try [to] get on top of that.
"It's important to remember [that] for the other 19 races, the way I've been driving has been working pretty well. It's more about adding some tools to the toolbox rather than reinventing myself."
In the last five grand prix weekends, Piastri has managed to score just 47 points, while Norris has earned 79 and Verstappen 116.
This saw the championship lead change hands.
Amid the 24-year-old's performance slump, some F1 fans have suggested that McLaren is favouring Norris in the title fight by giving the Briton a preferential car setup.
McLaren has repeatedly dismissed theories of car sabotage or mechanical faults.
"We know that we've added tools to the toolbox with Oscar, which will make him definitely even stronger for an exciting final part of the championship," team principal Andrea Stella said post-race.
