Oscar Piastri has revealed he and McLaren hope to repeat their 2023 turnaround despite a bittersweet Formula 1 Hungarian Grand Prix.
Piastri and McLaren’s season has been one of frustration and poor reliability, as the MCL40 acted as a significant step backwards from its double title-winning predecessor.
But new upgrades for Hungary, including a new floor, looked to have transformed the car after a series of difficult races for the team, with Piastri in contention for victory.
Poor reliability would strike again, however, as Piastri retired with gearbox failure despite taking the lead from teammate Lando Norris at the start and being in prime position to take his first win of the season.
Piastri confirmed McLaren is aware of its difficult position, and its taking steps to improve its performance.
“We’re very conscious and aware of where we sit,” the former said. “We’re under no illusions that we’re lacking some performance, and we really want to chase it.
“We’ve got good ideas on how we can do it. And I think everybody’s hungry to get back to where we have been and taste that success again.”
Oscar Piastri hoping for a 2023 repeat?
Piastri recalled the 2023 season as the basis of his confidence of a turnaround. McLaren started with one of the slowest cars on the grid at the start of the season before targeted upgrades transformed it into a podium contender by mid-year.
“The past seasons do give me confidence,” he said.
“When you look at the previous experience of what we’ve been able to achieve as a team, and how we’ve been able to make progress through the year, it’s good.
“In 2023, we were in a much worse position than where we are now, and we were able to really jump up the order to fight for podiums.”
Piastri also confirmed he and Norris were now working together in a similar way to 2023 as part of McLaren’s push for a sustained challenge for podiums and wins in 2026.
“The way Lando and I worked together then to try and focus on making the car quick so we could then fight for the results that we wanted hasn’t changed,” he said.
“It’s still strong, productive conversations together with the team all pushing for the same goal.”
“I feel like for me, I’ve already seen it play out more than once. I think that’s a real strength of the team.
“Yes, things are different, the cars are different, maybe the way we will make that step will look different. But we’ve made that step before, and I’m confident we can do it again.”
Piastri’s steadfastness in the face of losing a potential victory demonstrates the Australian’s commitment to turning his season around.
How long this lasts will likely depend entirely on McLaren’s ability to give him a reliable car in the second half of the season.
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