Oscar Piastri admits Suzuka resurrgence really encouraging but McLaren are under no illusion

Piastri has experienced both extremes already this year. A crash on the way to the grid in Melbourne and a non-start in China left his campaign stalled before it had begun, but his recovery drive to P2 at the Japanese Grand Prix offered a reminder of the form that defined his 2025 season.

The wider context has only intensified the challenge. The Middle East crisis has forced the cancellation of Bahrain and Saudi Arabia, leaving the paddock idle until Miami, handing teams a rare window to regroup after Mercedes swept all three grands prix and the China sprint.

Piastri sees that pause as an opportunity rather than a setback: “Obviously, the off-season this year was very short, so it's a nice little window for everyone to get some good training in.

“Just some more time to prepare, basically. I think we've learned a lot in the first few races and still plenty more to learn, so it just gives us more time to analyse stuff, sit down, digest it and try and come back stronger for Miami.”

Now in his third season in Formula 1, Piastri arrives at this phase of the year with a fresh perspective after last season’s title fight unravelled despite early dominance.

But the lessons from 2025 remain central to Piastri's mindset: “We know from last year that even when you have the best car, you still need to operate it at an incredibly high level.

“I think it's interesting to see when someone else has the fastest car, that it's not that straightforward. I think the fact that I could keep George [Russell] behind for so long was really encouraging, but we're under no illusion.”

Despite executing a near-flawless weekend in Japan, the scale of McLaren’s deficit to Mercedes remains clear: “We did everything right [at Suzuka], and we still got beaten by 15 seconds, so we've got a pretty big gap to fill. I'm confident that we can get there, but yes, we've still got some work to do.”

The Suzuka podium may have stabilised Piastri’s season, but the numbers reinforce the reality facing McLaren. Mercedes have set the early benchmark, and closing that gap will define the next phase of the championship when racing resumes in Miami.

While the teams crunch their own performance data during the break, fans looking to back a McLaren comeback are already checking the latest parlay picks to map out their wagers for the next race." 
(Quotes from Agnes Carlier at Suzuka)