Unlucky Piastri ponders alternate reality and issues McLaren rally call<\/a><\/p>\nAntonelli becomes youngest F1 leader | 01:25<\/p>\n
\u2018THE BEST VERSION OF OSCAR\u2019<\/p>\n
The all-new rules have put a premium on seat time in 2026. It\u2019s not just that these cars are new; it\u2019s that the way you extract speed from these engines is completely different to what came before and is sometimes even counterintuitive for the drivers.<\/p>\n
Piastri, having completed just 19 racing laps before arriving in Japan, lined up on the grid in Suzuka with an experience deficit that should have made a strong result difficult to achieve considering his Mercedes and Ferrari rivals had already enjoyed several tense battles between themselves.<\/p>\n
If he was suffering from the lack of drive time, however, he didn\u2019t show it.<\/p>\n
A sizzling start got him into the lead immediately, and a superb defensive drive, equally tactical and forceful, improbably kept him there ahead of George Russell in a much faster Mercedes.<\/p>\n
He kept it up so long that Russell\u2019s assault was eventually broken, and the two drivers made their sole pit stops without swapping position. Piastri still had half a race to go with a defensive posture, but he was in a winning position.<\/p>\n
But then the safety car came out.<\/p>\n
Antonelli, yet to pit, capitalised with a cheap stop and took the lead. In a much faster car, he was impossible to catch.<\/p>\n
Instead Piastri\u2019s centimetre-perfect execution would be to hold P2, and he duly came home with McLaren\u2019s best result of the season.<\/p>\n
\u201cI think this weekend was probably one of my best weekends in F1,\u201d said the nine-time grand prix winner. \u201cIt felt like I hit the ground running in practice. In qualifying I think we did a really good job of getting the car into the window I was happy with on Friday. I felt like I drove well in qualifying.<\/p>\n
Oscar Piastri\u2019s second-place finish at the Japanese Grand Prix was a moment of validation, relief and breakthrough all mixed into one.Source: AFP<\/p>\n
\u201cIn the race there wasn\u2019t anything more we could have done. We got a good start. The pace was good. I felt like I was strategic or smart with how I used the boost and how I managed that side of racing.<\/p>\n
\u201cOur strategy was good; we didn\u2019t blink too early. Obviously the safety car was a shame, but I think as race weekends go, we couldn\u2019t have done any better than that.<\/p>\n
\u201cI\u2019m very happy with the performance I put in; I\u2019m very happy with the performance from the whole team.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe\u2019ve got a long way to go, but we showed that if we get everything as good as we can get it, then we can cause a few headaches.\u201d<\/p>\n
Team principal Andrea Stella praised Piastri\u2019s attitude amid the brutal start to the season, telling journalists in Suzuka that he\u2019d found another level and, in turn, driven the team to greater heights despite the struggles.<\/p>\n
\u201cDespite Oscar not having started the two main races at the start of the 2026 season, based on what we have seen in testing, in practice, in qualifying, based on his overall attitude and mental strength, I think we are seeing the best version of Oscar, the strongest Oscar since he\u2019s been in Formula 1,\u201d enthused McLaren principal Andrea Stella.<\/p>\n
\u201cI think today finally he had an opportunity to demonstrate it, and he has done it in its full extent.<\/p>\n
\u201cIf we think of the home race, where you are not in a condition to start for a situation that was completely avoidable, it can really bog you down, but if anything, I think we\u2019ve seen his steadiness, his strength \u2014 and a strength that has been able to be passed on to the team.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe team gets a lot of inspiration from the charismatic leadership that the drivers can offer. That\u2019s been definitely a boost for the entire team to go through the adversity.<\/p>\n
\u201cReally well done to Oscar for the way he\u2019s been facing this start of the season.\u201d<\/p>\n
COULD MCLAREN\u2019S RESURGENCE HAVE DELIVERED VICTORY?<\/p>\n
As well as Piastri drove, that he was in contention to win this race was a surprise to McLaren, which had predicted on Saturday night that the team would likely find itself behind both Mercedes and Ferrari at the chequered flag, just as it had done in Australia and China.<\/p>\n
Though Antonelli demonstrated in the second stint that the Mercedes car remains comfortably faster than any other, Piastri proved that McLaren wasn\u2019t so slow as to be an easybeat in the race if it could take track position.<\/p>\n
But McLaren knows that its car isn\u2019t a match for the leaders. The bugbear of the opening two rounds was that its engine also wasn\u2019t a match for Mercedes despite being the same model.<\/p>\n
In qualifying, however, that gap in understanding of how to run the engine appeared to close, and the race demonstrated the same, with Piastri able to outwit Russell with his usage of the hybrid motor.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe were surprised ourselves, especially at the end of the first stint, where we not only were able to keep Russell behind but were also opening the gap at the end of the first stint,\u201d Stella said.<\/p>\n
\u201cI think today we confirmed the progress that we saw yesterday in qualifying.\u201d<\/p>\n
For a time Piastri seemed close to certain for victory, having held off Russell and beaten him in the pit stops too, only for the safety car to drop him to second.<\/p>\n
It begs the question: could \u2014 should \u2014 Piastri have won that race?<\/p>\n
Could this podium order have been flipped?Source: AFP<\/p>\n
\u201cI would have loved to have seen how it would have panned out,\u201d he said with a knowing smile, and when asked whether he felt this race proved Mercedes could be beaten, he was unequivocal.<\/p>\n
\u201cYes,\u201d he said. \u201cI think the fact that I could keep George behind for so long was really encouraging.<\/p>\n
\u201cI\u2019m confident that we can get there, but we\u2019ve still got some work to do.\u201d<\/p>\n
And it\u2019s a lot of work still to do. There\u2019s no sugar-coating the 14-second advantage Antonelli opened up easily after the safety car.<\/p>\n
Antonelli\u2019s pace raises some doubt about whether Piastri could have won the race given the Italian was clearly quicker than Russell this weekend \u2014 though, then again, he struggled to pass Lando Norris early in the race.<\/p>\n
Stella also thinks Ferrari still looks stronger through the corners, with the power unit making the difference between them.<\/p>\n
But after a challenging opening phase of the season, McLaren will take the result. It\u2019s confident it\u2019s on the right track, and now it has the silverware to prove it during the long April break.<\/p>\n
BEARMAN CRASH REVEALS UNCOMFORTABLE TRUTH ABOUT NEW RULES<\/p>\n
That pivotal safety car was triggered by a sickening crash for Oliver Bearman, who limped away from his smashed-up Haas having sustained a 50 g impact at Spoon.<\/p>\n
Bearman left the road at 308 kilometres per hour attempting to avoid what would have been an aeroplane accident with Franco Colapinto.<\/p>\n
The Briton was chasing the Argentine for 17th place out of the hairpin. As he rounded turn 12, Colapinto\u2019s rear lights flashed red twice, signifying he was out of battery.<\/p>\n
Bearman, meanwhile, was holding down his boost button.<\/p>\n
The speed delta was suddenly a monstrous 50 kilometres per hour \u2014 enormous for two drivers at full throttle.<\/p>\n
Bearman swung left in equal parts to try to make a move and to avoid a crash, but he ended up on the grass, where he lost control of the car and triggered the smash.<\/p>\n
It was exactly the sort of incident many in the sport had feared would be inevitable this season.<\/p>\n
The 2026 engine doesn\u2019t work like a regular racing motor because it is constantly charging and discharging the battery in a way that materially impacts power output. When a driver presses the boost button, they have access to 750 kilowatts. When they run out of battery, they have just 400 kilowatts, and depending on where they are around the track, some of that power could be directed to charging the battery, creating an even bigger disparity.<\/p>\n
And because every power unit manufacturer charges and discharges the battery differently \u2014 that is, charge and deploy at different parts of the track \u2014 and because some are just more powerful or more efficient than others, the manifestation of these sorts of closing speeds are unpredictable. It\u2019s not as if every car is charging, discharging and running empty at the same parts of the track.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe\u2019ve been warning them about this happening,\u201d Carlos Sainz, a director of the Grand Prix Drivers Association, told Sky Sports. \u201cThese kinds of closing speeds and these kinds of accidents were always going to happen, and I\u2019m not very happy with what we\u2019ve had up until now.<\/p>\n
\u201cI was so surprised when they [the FIA] said, \u2018No, we will sort out qualifying and leave the racing alone, because it\u2019s exciting\u2019.<\/p>\n
\u201cAs drivers, we\u2019ve been extremely vocal that the problem is not only qualifying, it\u2019s also racing, and we\u2019ve been warning that this kind of accident was always going to happen.<\/p>\n
\u201cHere we were lucky there was an escape road. Now imagine going to Baku or going to Singapore or going to Vegas and having this kind of closing speeds and crashes next to the walls.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe, as the GPDA, warned the FIA these accidents are going to happen a lot with this set of regulations, and we need to change something soon if we don\u2019t want them to happen.<\/p>\n
\u201cI hope it serves as an example and the [FIA and FOM] listen to the drivers and not so much to the teams and people that said the racing was okay, because the racing is not okay.\u201d<\/p>\n
It was significant that Sainz spoke up on behalf of the drivers, most of whom, for the most part, have stepped back from heavily criticising the rules.<\/p>\n
Charles Leclerc, for example, was more equivocal, saying drivers have to learn to be conscious of their lines when they are down on power.<\/p>\n
Team bosses have been similar, with some speaking out less strongly than others, which raises the spectre of rule changes becoming political. The frontrunning teams, for example, are less likely to face this sort of problem given they\u2019re racing fewer cars in the leading group.<\/p>\n
McLaren boss Stella, though, has been talking about this risk since pre-season testing, and he said it would be moved to the top of the list during crunch regulation meetings in April.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe don\u2019t want to wait for things to happen to put actions in place,\u201d he said. \u201cToday something happened.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe have a responsibility to put in place the actions that, especially from a safety point of view, should be implemented.<\/p>\n
\u201cI don\u2019t think a simple solution exists, but we have the expertise, the engineers, the variables to put in place some actions.<\/p>\n
\u201cI think this will be something that will be looked at in the meetings that will happen during the break between FIA, the teams and F1.<\/p>\n
\u201cThis should jump at the top of the agenda.\u201d<\/p>\n
Formula 1 has a month to thrash out this issue, but in a sport of such high stakes, sometimes words are easier than action.<\/p>\n
ANTONELLI KEEPS MAKING HISTORY <\/p>\n
Andrea Kimi Antonelli has already made history in Formula 1 this season.<\/p>\n
In China he became the youngest pole-getter ever, and his victory made him the second-youngest grand prix winner in history, behind only Max Verstappen.<\/p>\n
His second victory this weekend added considerably to his collection of accolades.<\/p>\n
Victory put him to the top of the championship table with a nine-point buffer over teammate George Russell.<\/p>\n
At 19 years old, he\u2019s the youngest driver ever to leave the title standings. The previous holder of the record was Lewis Hamilton, who held top spot in his rookie 2007 season at 22 years old.<\/p>\n
Antonelli becomes youngest F1 leader | 01:25<\/p>\n
He\u2019s also the first Italian to lead the championship since 2005, when Giancarlo Fisichella, then racing for Renault won the season-opening Australian Grand Prix to assume top position. He didn\u2019t last long in first place, however, with three successive DNFs in the following three grands prix.<\/p>\n
Remarkably, he\u2019s also the first Italian in almost three-quarters of a century to win back-to-back grands prix \u2014 the previous was Alberto Ascari, who won the Dutch and Belgian grands prix succession in 1953.<\/p>\n
Ascari went on to win the championship that year, his second and final title. Ascari remains Italy\u2019s most recent world champion; Giuseppe Farina, winner of the inaugural 1950 season, is the only other Italian to claim a title.<\/p>\n
\u201cI\u2019m not thinking too much about the championship,\u201d Antonelli said. \u201cOf course it\u2019s great, but it\u2019s still a long way to go, and I need to keep raising the bar because George is very quick, and for sure he\u2019s going to be back at his usual level, and also competitors eventually they will get closer.<\/p>\n
\u201cI think we need to keep our head down and keep raising the bar.\u201d<\/p>\n
Keep raising the bar, and the rest of the history will take car of itself.<\/p>\n
IS RUSSELL FEELING THE HEAT ALREADY? <\/p>\n
Antonelli\u2019s explosion comes with the invetable by-product of heaping pressure on his teammate George Russell. <\/p>\n
After Antonelli suffered his poor start, Russell fancied himself to deliver the perfect reply to China by winning in Japan. <\/p>\n
But just as the race win appeared to be boiling down to a battle between Russell and Piastri on-track, it was flipped on its head by the Bearman crash which left the Briton fuming. <\/p>\n
By just one lap did Russell miss out on pitting under the safety car, which almost certainly would\u2019ve given him the race win given Piastri had pitted a lap earlier than that, and he would\u2019ve stayed in front of Antonelli. <\/p>\n
‘F*** our luck!’ – Russell CRACKS it | 00:30<\/p>\n
\u201cUnbelievable. Wow, f***, our luck in these last two races,\u201d he bellowed over team radio, likely a reference to a Q3 incident in China that hurt his chances of gaining pole.<\/p>\n
Russell was also notably edgy during the safety car period in which he asked his team about how Antonelli would re-start the race, appearing to vaguely reference some pre-agreed arrangement\/ <\/p>\n
What happened next was somewhat telling \u2014 team boss Toto Wolff, and not Russell\u2019s race engineer Marcus Dudley, was the one to speak. <\/p>\n
\u201cGeorge, see what you can do from here, yeah. Super unlucky,\u201d Wolff said.<\/p>\n
It\u2019s easy to see the exchange as a team boss simply trying to calm down his star driver and prevent compounding the issue, but Sky Sports\u2019 Ted Kravitz claimed there was more to it. <\/p>\n
\u201cListen, I feel for George, I really do, but I think some of these tetchy comments or complaints are not going down well in the Mercedes garage,\u201d Kravitz said from pit-lane during the race. <\/p>\n
\u201cThat\u2019s why we heard the response from Toto Wolff. That\u2019s the feeling there.\u201d<\/p>\n
Given Wolff doesn\u2019t often speak mid-race, he may have a point.<\/p>\n
Meanwhile, Russell had done little to calm down after the race, bemoaning the bad luck that cruelled his race, while claiming he \u201cprobably\u201d would have beaten Piastri without it.<\/p>\n
\u201cEverything that could go wrong, did go wrong,\u201d he said. <\/p>\n
\u201cObviously we both made bad starts \u2013 mine was slightly less bad; Safety Car timing; (at the) restart, I got a harvest limit which meant I couldn\u2019t recharge my battery, similar to what\u2019s happened with some drivers at the race starts.<\/p>\n
\u201cI had no battery to restart \u2013 Lewis (Hamilton) passed me \u2013 and then I faced another battery problem when Charles passed me.<\/p>\n
\u201cAs I said, one lap different and we\u2019d be having probably a very different conversation.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u2014 With Jacob Polychronis <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"\u201cIt turns out when we start these things we\u2019re pretty good!\u201d Oscar Piastri\u2019s second-place finish at the Japanese…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":573398,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[573],"tags":[260457,173126,12295,13273,1724,64,63,689,20211,281456,281467,239108,281458,4971,281462,281455,33102,13275,512,281473,281463,9239,281167,163471,817,281468,813,816,281465,281457,3875,2105,867,86311,14211,84708,242698,281173,281471,941,281163,823,825,101416,677,5242,88575,281459,18923,223944,33114,43359,281470,281466,16205,25598,281165,238953,281474,942,2643,2812,281472,85,281461,73217,281454,2087,13773,281464,43342,77351,281460,64317,281469],"class_list":["post-573397","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-formula-1","tag-aeroplane-accident","tag-alberto-ascari","tag-andrea-kimi-antonelli","tag-andrea-stella","tag-asia","tag-au","tag-australia","tag-australia-and-new-zealand","tag-back-to-back-wins","tag-belgian-grands-prix-succession","tag-best-ever-drives","tag-boost-button","tag-breaks-drought","tag-carlos-sainz","tag-centimetre-perfect-execution","tag-challenging-opening-phase","tag-championship-table","tag-charles-leclerc","tag-china","tag-defensive-posture","tag-drive-time","tag-eastern-asia","tag-escape-road","tag-experience-deficit","tag-f1","tag-final-title","tag-formula-1","tag-formula1","tag-g-impact","tag-g-smash","tag-george-russell","tag-getty-images-inc","tag-giancarlo-fisichella","tag-grand-prix-winner","tag-grands-prix","tag-home-race","tag-hybrid-motor","tag-impacts-power","tag-inferior-car","tag-japan","tag-lap-safety-car","tag-lewis-hamilton","tag-max-verstappen","tag-nine-time-grand-prix","tag-oceania","tag-oliver-bearman","tag-pit-stops","tag-pivotal-safety-car","tag-power-unit","tag-power-unit-manufacturer","tag-race-weekends","tag-race-winner","tag-racing-laps","tag-regulation-meetings","tag-rule-changes","tag-safety-car","tag-safety-point","tag-season-opening-australian","tag-second-youngest-grand-prix","tag-singapore","tag-sky-sports","tag-south-eastern-asia","tag-speed-delta","tag-sports","tag-superb-defensive-drive","tag-suzuka","tag-swapping-position","tag-team-bosses","tag-team-principal","tag-tense-battles","tag-title-standings","tag-track-position","tag-ugly-truth","tag-world-championship-leader","tag-youngest-world-championship"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/573397","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=573397"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/573397\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/573398"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=573397"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=573397"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=573397"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}
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