Oscar Piastri says McLaren are getting closer to Mercedes but still have a big gap to fill at Suzuka

In the wake of two DNSs, in Melbourne first and Shanghai last time out, Piastri will be looking to complete his first laps of the season, even finish the race and a podium would be an idesal way bto kick start his season

After the session at Suzuka, Piastri reflected: “I think qualifying has been okay this year, but nice to get into the top three. I think this weekend we’ve looked good, and I think we’ve executed well. We clearly don’t have the pace or the grip to match Mercedes still, but we’re getting closer, which is the most important point.

“I think it was pretty well executed. I think the final lap of Q3 was a bit of a mess, but apart from that I think we built into things well. I had a pretty good idea of what I wanted from the car after FP3 and I think we did a good job of achieving that, and then also how you have to drive.

“You’ve got to do some interesting things, so I think just staying disciplined on that worked well and I’m happy to end up where we are. I think everyone seemed to chop and change a bit through qualifying. We didn’t look great in Q1 and then Q2 we came alive and managed to hold that pace. I thought the Ferraris were going to be on a par at one point, so it was all a bit of a mixed bag, but happy to end up third.”

Reflecting on his final run, Piastri added: “Maybe a tiny bit, but it’s always impossible to know. I think especially with these cars, like Kimi said, it’s very easy to think you’re going faster and doing the right thing, and you end up going slower because the engine doesn’t like it. So, it’s a tricky balance, but I think it was pretty close to what we could have done.”

Piastri acknowledged McLaren’s step forward but remained realistic about where the team stands in the competitive order: “It’s nice to be closer, obviously. I think we’re learning more and more about the car and about the power unit every weekend.

"I think this weekend in Suzuka, let’s say being slower in the Esses than Mercedes is not necessarily a bad thing, which is weird to say. But yeah, I think we were saved a little bit by that. So, I think we’ve been more competitive in general, but we’re under no illusion, we’ve still got a pretty big gap to fill.”

Looking ahead to Sunday, the Australian pointed to the unknowns that still surround race conditions in this new era: “I mean, not necessarily, but you don’t know what you don’t know until you’re in the situation. So yeah, I’ve tried to learn as much as I can from watching the races and even through practice.

“There have been some interesting moments with cars at different speeds in different parts of the track. I overtook someone into Degner 1 yesterday, which was different. But yeah, you’re learning all the time and I think just the level of awareness you need is very high.

“But I think ultimately pace is going to be the thing that decides your result, and the start as well. Well, maybe not the start if it’s these guys around you, but yeah, we’ll see what we can do," added the Australian 24-year-old.

Lando Norris will start fifth after a disrupted build-up left him short on preparation, particularly in race trim. He said after quali: “It certainly impacted our ability to test things, try things and get comfortable the car early on, and also do high fuel running to prepare for tomorrow.

“I’ve done no high fuel running, so it’s been difficult and I’ve been playing a lot of catch up this weekend, even into qualifying. I don’t want to say all of the gap today was simply that. I certainly don’t feel like I was on top form and got everything out of it.

“I made a couple of mistakes on my final lap but everyone went slower apart from a couple. I’m happy with P5. I was very close to Charles, I know it was a small gap so it hurts a bit more knowing the gap was that small, otherwise I feel like I did a good job. Could it have been better? Yes. But it also could have been a lot worse," added the reigning F1 World Champion.

McLaren team principal Andrea Stella remains cautious about the team’s chances of fighting Ferrari for a podium, despite clear signs of improvement: “Ferrari have shown they gained some relative pace in the race. I would be positively surprised that we are in condition to compete with Ferrari for podiums."

Stella was adamant: “We have seen progress this weekend, so definitely we will be there. It’s also racing, anything can happen. We will have a go at the podium but we know we need to improve the car, and, above all, bring some upgrades. That’s the plan for the following race. Then, we can more steadily fight for the podium, and hopefully later in the season, the victory.”

Stella added: “There are some indications of progress from a performance and overall competitiveness point of view. I think this progress comes from the fact we are getting a little bit more out of the chassis and set-up, but mostly we are getting more out of the power unit.

“We have always talked about how difficult it is with this new generation of power unit to exploit but we are getting more familiar with it, calibrating better with our HPP engineers and this is rewarded by cashing in some lap time.

“Having said that, it’s positive in qualifying we are there with Ferrari but Merceds are still one step ahead," declared Stella.

Formula 1 fans, the non-Mercedes brigade will be hoping that McLaren get their act together sooner than later. Anything less than a podium for the Woking outfit at the Japanese Grand Prix on Sunday, will be a blow not only to them, but all who don't want this season to be a one-team contest between Kimi Antonelli and George Russell. The pair start ahead of Piastri on Sunday.
(Reporting by Agnes Carlier from Suzuka)