Piastri continues the Australians' home curse: "I was very strong on the other 56 laps..."

The curse continues. This year again, as it has been since the first edition of the Australian Grand Prix in 1985, no Australian will have reached the podium. Oscar piastri failed in his quest this Sunday: however, the pilot McLaren has long given hope to a crowd that came out in force despite the rain and wind, won over to the cause of its local hero. Starting on the front row, the young 23-year-old driver was quickly trapped by Max Verstappen at the first corner, but a few laps later, the Dutchman crashed under pressure from the Australian, who was much faster on a drying track.

Until the 44th lap, everything was looking good for Oscar Piastri: second, a few tenths behind his teammate, the Melbourne native seemed to be in a position to play for victory against Lando Norris. Alas, that was before the tragedy. A brief but intense downpour hit Albert Park, and the McLaren drivers, the first to arrive in the final sector—the first to be hit by the rain—both crashed. Only Oscar Piastri suffered serious consequences.

Everything that happened (or almost) in just two rounds of rain 🌧️⬇️#AustralianGP #F1 pic.twitter.com/fCNmRYqAYC

— CANAL+ F1® (@CanalplusF1) March 16, 2025

« I only have myself to blame.", judge Piastri

Spinning in the penultimate corner, Oscar Piastri found himself stuck in the escape route: unable to find traction with slick tires on the wet grass, the Australian struggled for over a minute before being able to reverse out and get back on track. A significant time loss that relegated him to the last positions. With victory now out of reach, the #81 gave his all at the end of the race to save the day and managed to secure a dismal 9th ​​place, a small consolation for the local driver.

"I'm obviously very disappointed at the moment. I don't really know what to say. It was a mistake on my part, and the consequences are unfortunate, he confided, dejected, at the F1 microphoneI can only blame myself, I pushed too hard in these conditions. I was very strong for the other 56 and three-quarter laps. I'm disappointed, but there are still a lot of positives to take from it. (…) I prefer to know that I drove a race that I could have won, rather than one where I would have been in difficulty but where I would have finished on the podium.

The long and cruel scene where Oscar Piastri desperately tries to escape from the vegetation zone is already one of the strong images of this season and of this first race. "I tried to back off for a minute. We made the right decisions. There was a lot better to do than ninth place today, said the Australian, his gaze blank.It's a shame not to have achieved this result. (…) For me, the big positive point was the other 56 laps of the race. I had a very good pace in all conditions and that's what I'll try to take away from this weekend." With Lando Norris' victory, Oscar Piastri already finds himself 23 points behind his teammate in the championship. This situation is far from ideal, given that McLaren will quickly take the lead regarding team orders in 2025.

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