Piastri: I had about four cars in the last corner, which didn’t help

2025 Formula 1 World Championship points leader Piastri was the first to head out on track for the final runs in Q3, a decision that ultimately paid off as he edged out the competition despite traffic at the final corner.

Piastri said after qualifying: “It was a great session. Very tough session, with all the delays, the red flags, and then also the tyres. The tyres have been very, very tricky today. I think after Friday everyone thought the C6 was not too bad, and then today it was a real mystery.

“So, the team did a great job, got the car in a nice window. We’ve been trying a few different things this weekend and we got into a nice place for qualifying. The lap was good. I had about four cars in the last corner, which didn’t help, but it was enough. So very, very happy with the job well done, and yeah, I’m excited for tomorrow.”

McLaren’s bold move to send Piastri out first for the final Q3 run was seen as a potential risk, but the 23-year-old Australian executed the lap flawlessly.

Explaining the thinking behind the decision, Piastri said: “Yes, I mean, I wasn’t thrilled to be the first car on track, but I had quite a big gap in the run before anyway, so it wasn’t actually that much different for me.

“Of course, you lose the slipstream going first, but you don’t have any disturbed air, you don’t have any dirty air. I think that definitely helped me out a little bit. But yeah, that’s what we chose to do.

"I think we’ve got enough pace to be able to do that and stick to our guns, and that’s what we did. So the team did a great job of executing that one," added Piastri, ahead of his third top spot start in Formula 1.

McLaren team principal Andrea Stella had high praise for his driver: "Oscar, once again, he proved how cool he is – really a cold head, because he found so many cars in the last two corners. He stayed calm, he managed not to lose too much time, and scored the pole position. So, I think just confirmation of the talent that we know we have in hand.

Piastri will now start Sunday’s race from pole position, aiming to convert it into a fourth consecutive Grand Prix victory and extend his lead in this year's title race over his main rivals.