Piastri: First target is the Constructors'

The Woking-based outfit have closed the gap to the defending Champions to just 42 points after another strong performance at the Belgian Grand Prix. In fact, McLaren appear to have the fastest overall package heading into the summer break, replacing a once-dominant Red Bull that had a stranglehold at the head of the field in the ground effect era of Formula 1.

There's no denying that Red Bull are going through difficult times, with the expected departure of multiple key figures including Chief Technology Officer Adrian Newey and Sporting Director Jonathan Wheatley. Not to mention the slump in form that driver Sergio Perez is experiencing which is losing the Milton Keynes-based team valuable points in the Standings.

McLaren driver Piastri is on a hot streak in recent weeks, securing his maiden Grand Prix win in Hungary and beating teammate Lando Norris once again at the Circuit de Spa-Francorchamps a week later. The former involved a late position swap between the McLaren pair that Norris was not particularly pleased about.

Piastri now has on outside shot at the Drivers' crown and will be the man to beat once F1 returns in September. Despite this, the Australian was keen to point out that the focus is primarily on the team rather than his own standing in the Championship.

Speaking to Sky Sports F1, Piastri said: "The first objective is to win the constructors' for the team and I think we've got a very strong chance of doing that. We've been closing the gap to Red Bull in the last six or seven races.

“I think for me, the Drivers' Standings, of course I'd like to finish as high as I can. I'm not not out of the running for the championship myself, it's a very big ask, but I want to string together good races, build consistency on that front, and really help the team to win the constructors.

"If it comes to a situation where I need to help Lando later in the year then of course it is something we'll discuss, but the first target is to win the constructors' and try do a good job for myself as well," added the 23-year-old.

Unlike 2023, where McLaren were only in contention for race victories on circuits with an abundance of high-speed turns like Silverstone, the MCL38 appears to be strong on a wide variety of tracks.

Alluding to this, Piastri continued: "At the end of last year we had a very quick car on certain circuits but we really needed to rely on those circuits to get good results.

"This year, we've just been quick everywhere and that's been a joy to be a part of, but a real confidence boost to everybody that we're not relying on the high-speed corners like we were last year.

"We can rock up and be pretty confident we'll be, if not the quickest then one of the quickest, and I think that sets us up really nicely for next year. I want to learn as much as I can and have as much success as I can this year. But ultimately, I think trying to set up a really strong run next year is a realistic target at the moment,” concluded Piastri.

F1 returns for the Dutch Grand Prix on 25 August at 14:00 BST (15:00 local time).