Between the headline ‘Constructors Under Attack for McLaren and Bortoleto in Formula 1,’ here’s how Oscar Piastri expressed himself during the press conference for the Brazilian GP.
With Ferrari’s double victory in Texas and Carlos Sainz’s win in Mexico City, where his teammate finished third, McLaren’s lead in the Constructors’ Championship is not as secure as it seems; the Maranello team is currently only 39 points behind Woking, with four races still to go. Additionally, in the last race, McLaren started from opposite ends of the grid, with Lando Norris, who began in third and finished in second, and Oscar Piastri, who made an impressive comeback, crossing the finish line in eighth place after gaining nine positions.
During the press conference ahead of the Brazilian Grand Prix at the historic Autódromo José Carlos Pace, the McLaren driver shared his thoughts on Ferrari securing second place, at the expense of Red Bull, following the last Formula 1 race in Mexico: “I would say, no. I think we always knew that Ferrari were going to be a threat. And I think, you know, since Monza, basically, they’ve had a very, very quick car. Just some of the weekends, the results haven’t shown it.So for us, it’s not been a huge surprise that they’ve been as quick as they’ve been in the last few weekends, especially.
“So we’ll see if that run continues. But we knew to expect a fight, definitely. So, yeah, it’s going to be an exciting end to the year in both championships, I think”.
In response to a question from Canal+, Oscar Piastri also commented on the possibility of his teammate, Lando Norris, winning his first world title by finishing ahead of three-time world champion Max Verstappen. The Australian, however, did not overlook the difficulties that the Dutch rival might face in trying to achieve the coveted success.
“I mean, I think it’s possible. You know, it’s certainly not an easy task. And, you know, in some ways it’s, you know, it’s up to both drivers. What happens, obviously, it’s, you know, Lando can’t just win every race and have Max finish second because Max will still win. So it depends a bit on the results. You know, it’s obviously a very tight fight with the top three teams and Mercedes occasionally now still, so the swing either way can still be quite big at the moment I would say. I think it’s possible it’s going to be tough but I think it’s doable.”.
Regarding the setup of the MCL38, the driver of car number 81 stated that he is “much happier,” then comparing the last two weekends: “I think in Austin we had a car that was quick but very, very difficult to drive. And I think in qualifying, especially, it was tough to get the most out of it. In the race, just going a bit slower with the lap times, it’s maybe a little bit easier to get the pace out of it“.
Regarding Mexico, the words of the Melbourne driver seem almost paradoxical considering how he felt more in tune with the car on the circuit dedicated to the Rodríguez brothers: “But I was much happier in Mexico, which obviously the results don’t reflect. But yeah, felt much more comfortable and, yeah, kind of made qualifying even more of a shame, really. But I would rather, you know, in some ways have a weekend like Mexico where I’m comfortable at least and knowing that I made a mistake rather than a bit more in Austin where just struggling to get the most out of the car.”
Piastri backs Bortoleto in Formula 1: “He deserves a seat”
Another topic of discussion, introduced by Motorsport.com during the media segment of the conference, was Gabriel Bortoleto, the Brazilian driver whose name has been added to the “hot seat,” which includes the names of drivers vying for the only remaining spot for next season at Sauber.
“I think he’s been doing a very impressive job. Obviously winning F3 as a rookie last year and now leading the championship in F2. So yeah, I think from my point of view, when you’re achieving those kind of results, you deserve to be in F1. And I have the personal experience of the pain of not getting a seat. So for his sake, I hope he doesn’t have to go through that. I don’t think anyone will ever go through quite the extent that I did. But I think he’s been doing a very good job. Yeah, if he’s doing it on merit, then I think he deserves a place in F1” he said, speaking about Bortoleto.
In this regard, Max Verstappen also commented: “Yeah, I mean, if I was Sauber, I would have signed him already.
I mean, especially if that’s anyway the future, you know, young drivers. And ‘26, big rule change. It’s always good to get used to a team already for a year, make your mistakes here and there, get integrated well, understand the car a bit. You always feel much more prepared and comfortable when you then start in ‘26”.
Photos: Oscar Piastri, McLaren.
