Piastri ‘ready to go’ as McLaren faces awkward moment

Following a “world class” victory at the Azerbaijan Grand Prix, Oscar Piastri is eager to get his hands a second consectuive race win in a bid to close the gap in the constructors championship.
The 23-year-old’s late-season surge has put McLaren in contention to take out the constructors’ championship for the first time since 1998.
Atop the standings for the first time since 2014, McLaren’s rise has coincided with Piastri’s excellent recent run of form, positioning him as one of the hottest drivers on the circuit.
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“After an incredible weekend securing my second grand prix win, I’m ready to go for it again in Singapore,” said Piastri.
Oscar Piastri celebrates his victory.  Getty
Piastri’s improvements in the 12 months since his rookie season have been of significant benefit for McLaren, with his worst race result since June being fourth place.
With the next race held at the floodlit Marina Bay track, the nature of the Singapore Grand Prix promises to be a “incredibly demanding” challenge for both the drivers and their cars.
But the challenge is not one Piastri believes will slow him down.
“It’s a shorter circuit but an incredibly demanding one for the drivers,” he said.
“We have a good rhythm going in the team and we now have to keep adding as many points as possible.”
Oscar Piastri races at the F1 Grand Prix of Azerbaijan at Baku City Circuit. Getty
Obstructed by a qualifying red flag at last year’s Singapore Grand Prix, Piastri produced a sensational comeback and gained 10 places from 17th to secure points for McLaren.
The 2023 race is a promising sign for the driver and McLaren fans, although taking out the top spot may be compromised by the team’s attempt to help Lando Norris take out the drivers championship.
Piastri’s opportunity to contest for the individual title looks out of reach as he sits 91 points behind ladder leader Max Verstappen.
However, his current form and consistency can still see him jump ahead of Ferrari’s Charles Leclerc, who sits 13 points ahead in third.
(L-R) Lando Norris, Max Verstappen and Charles Leclerc on the podium. Getty
But McLaren’s chief engineer Tom Stallard remains confident the Melburnian will be contesting the individual title in the near future.
“We’ve been working really hard with Oscar this year on race type management and we’ve made massive strides with that,” Stallard said.
“It’s no longer a weakness, let’s say. I still think there’s plenty to learn. He’s improving all the time with his understanding of the tyres.
“I sort of said, ‘you know, remember in the first stint, we damaged the tyres a lot attacking. This time let’s be tactical’.”
Stallard smiled when asked about the moment Piastri ignored his orders to remain cautious on his new tyres after a pit stop, only to make a sensational surge ahead of then race leader Leclerc.
“He knows me well enough also to know that that’s the scientist in me saying that, but the racer in me is saying ‘go and get him’,” he said.
“And the racer in Oscar, fortunately, went and got him.”