Oscar Piastri has revealed that losing the race win in Formula 1‘s Qatar Grand Prix “hurts more” than the double disqualification that McLaren sustained in Las Vegas.
Piastri ended a wretched six-race run without a podium in Lusail, but he was aggrieved as a mishap on the McLaren pit wall cost him a possible return to the top step.
Having controlled the Sprint Race earlier in the weekend, the Australian looked well-positioned to bag maximum points when he headed the Grand Prix’s opening laps.
However, the race turned on its head on the seventh lap when Pierre Gasly and Nico Hulkenberg came to blows going through Turn 1, leaving the Sauber car stranded.
But while the other sides capitalised on the subsequent Safety Car to make their opening pitstops, McLaren decided not to bring Piastri or team-mate Lando Norris in.
That call would prove to be a mistake as McLaren didn’t have the pace to make up the time lost to Max Verstappen, who beat Piastri with over seven seconds in hand.
Asked to describe his frustration, Piastri told media including Motorsport Week: “Pretty high – and that’s saying quite a lot given the last few races I’ve had.
“But, yeah, I mean, clearly, we didn’t get it right today, which is a shame because the whole weekend went very, very well.
“We had a lot of pace. I felt like I drove well. So, yeah, it’s pretty painful.”
Piastri, who has dropped to third in the Drivers’ Championship behind Verstappen, conceded the outcome was more upsetting to him than his exclusion in Las Vegas.
“I think on a personal level, I feel like I’ve lost a win today,” he expressed.
“You know, in Vegas, I lost a P4. Obviously, for the team, it was a pretty painful weekend.
“But, yeah, I think for me personally, this probably hurts more.”
Why Piastri obliged with McLaren decision
Piastri addressed that he adhered to the instruction not to pit at that point as the strategists on the pit wall have a greater perspective than he does inside the cockpit.
“I asked, ‘What are we doing?’ Because we were getting pretty close to the pit entry and I hadn’t had a call yet,” he recalled.
“So I think when you don’t get a call instantly when the Safety Car comes out, clearly there’s probably some discussions going on about what to do.
“And in that situation, you have to trust the team because they have a lot more information than the driver in the car on where gaps are and stuff like that.
“So, yeah, I mean, in that scenario I have to trust what the team decide.”
READ MORE – Why McLaren didn’t pit under the Safety Car during F1 Qatar GP
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