“I F**ked Up”: Beating Norris Insufficient for Ambitious Oscar as Verstappen Proves Too Hot to Handle

George Russell tipped Lando Norris to be the Japanese GP winner earlier on in the weekend. However, that seems unlikely after Max Verstappen‘s blistering pace during the final part of the qualifying. Amid all this, Oscar Piastri remains unsatisfied despite beating Lando Norris in the qualifying. The dominant Verstappen is a little too much to handle for the rookie Piastri. What did Piastri say?

McLaren looked competitive since the start of The Japanese GP weekend. With new upgrades on both cars, it was expected to be a close fight between the Papaya team and Red Bull. However, Max Verstappen pulled out the ace up his sleeve and took the Japanese GP pole by over half a tenth. Oscar Piastri, despite being happy with his starting position, was gutted as his final lap in Q3 wasn’t to his liking.

As heard on F1TV, Oscar Piastri after the qualifying session radioed his team and said, “Well done everybody, thank you. The first lap was pretty good. The second one, nailed the tricky stuff and f**ked up the less tricky stuff. So thank you, good starting spot for tomorrow. Let’s have some fun!”

Read More: Max Verstappen Smashes Michael Schumacher’s 20 YO Record as He Overcomes Singapore Blip

Nonetheless, McLaren has a strategic advantage going into the race as they have two cars behind Max Verstappen. If Oscar Piastri and Lando Norris are able to stick with Max Verstappen during the race, a strategic pitstop advantage can be gained by pitting a driver early to force Verstappen into the pits. However, Oscar Piastri seems to have other plans.

Oscar Piastri reveals his plan to overtake Max Verstappen

Max Verstappen’s form at the Japanese GP looks unbeatable. It looks difficult for any driver to be able to keep up with the Dutchman during the race. However, Oscar Piastri reveals how he plans on overtaking Verstappen. The Australian suggests that Max’s is the only car in front of him and he will try to get past him going into the first corner.

According to nl.motorsport.com, Oscar Piastri said, “It’s the first time in a long time that I’m starting from the first row, so that’s going to be cool. There’s one car in front of me to overtake, so I’ll try to get that done.”

Oscar has good experience of fighting for the win in F2 & F3. Although, catching Verstappen’s RB19 in Suzuka may just be a very far-fetched possibility. If the Melbourne-born can even keep hold of P2 to get his maiden F1 podium, that would be bonkers. The Woking team will get immediate vindication just days after tying Piastri for a 3-year deal until 2026.

Do you think Oscar can get a podium tomorrow, if the win is out of reach?

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