Oscar Piastri reflects on Azerbaijan GP mistake after McLaren scoreless finish
Image accompanying the official F1 announcement.McLaren left the Azerbaijan Grand Prix in Baku without a point after 51 laps, with neither Oscar Piastri nor Lando Norris scoring. Piastri said a lock-up that hurt his race “certainly took me by surprise,” and he spoke of his disappointment after a strong opening phase.
Piastri had been running in podium contention early after passing Charles Leclerc for second at the opening corner. He held that position while Max Verstappen and Isack Hadjar pressed behind and remained second after pitting during the first of two Safety Cars, but he could not keep Verstappen behind at the restart and dropped to third.
A second Safety Car followed a collision at the opening corner involving Norris. After the next restart, Hadjar put Piastri under pressure, and Piastri suffered a double lock-up while defending into Turn 1 on the following lap, running into the escape area and falling down the order.
Piastri was classified 14th. He said there would be positives once “the dust settles,” pointing to qualifying and a better understanding of what to do with the car, even as he lamented the lack of points and no “trophy” on the day.
The result added to a difficult 2026 season for Piastri, who had recorded two podiums, including one at Miami in May. Norris had taken two wins from the previous five races heading into the event.
Reporting source: F1 official update