Oscar Piastri: "Since I put the wheels on the track this year, I feel good"

Oscar, you had a perfect race. What aspect of this victory gives you the most satisfaction?

Just crossing the line first. It wasn't an easy win. The start was tough, and so was the first stint behind Max. And then, once I had some clear air (without turbulence from a car in front - Ed.), it was a bit easier to manage. But I couldn't relax either. It was a demanding race, Max was fast behind me, so I had to keep pushing. I think I managed to control the race well, but it was closer than I would have liked.

You seemed to be in control. Did you still have some left in your tank at the end of the race?

Maybe. I don't know how long I could have ridden at that pace, but I was already taking reasonable risks during the race. On the last lap, I just wanted to see what I still had, but it wasn't worth taking a crazy risk either. Once in the open air, our pace was decent. But at the end of the Mediums stint, I had no margin on Max; it was difficult. So the pace wasn't as dominant as I would have liked, but it was enough.

According to Lando Norris, the Red Bull was here car the fastest on the track…

No. I think our car was still faster. It was just difficult in the dirty air. Max was faster than I expected, for sure. Over one lap, it wasn't a surprise to see him fast, but in the race, I didn't think I'd struggle as much at the end of the stint with the Mediums. So definitely, we still have work to do. I think our car is still very good, but if you look at the layout here compared to Suzuka, these are the two tracks that have been the most similar so far, and they're also the two tracks where Max and Red Bull have been closest. We still have an advantage, but it's less significant on surfaces and layouts like this. We're still very strong, though.

You're now the world championship leader for the first time in your career. Does that change anything for you?

No. I always want to try to win every race. Leading the championship doesn't concern me that much, but I'm proud of the work we've done and why we're in the lead. Melbourne wasn't a great start to the season in terms of results (9th after going off the track. Editor's note). Being in the lead is the result of all the work we've done during the off-season, the personal work I've done, and the team's work. I'm more proud of all that than being first in the championship, because what matters is being there after the 24th round, not after the fifth.

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