“That’s an Expensive Error”: Oscar Piastri Turns a Blind Eye to First F1 Failure as Financial Repercussions Haunt the McLaren Rookie

As per AlphaTauri team principal Franz Tost, a rookie takes around two or three seasons to get entirely comfortable in an F1 car. But McLaren’s Oscar Piastri is proving otherwise. In the McLaren that has proved difficult to adjust to by an experienced driver in Daniel Ricciardo, his compatriot has gotten up to speed in no time. As opposed to the race pace, the MCL60’s one-lap pace is pretty quick, and in the right conditions, it can easily compete for a top-10 starting position. And that was the case in Canada until Piastri made his first-ever mistake in F1.

The highly consistent Australian was confident about McLaren’s pace in the favorable track conditions in Montreal. But in only his fourth Q3 appearance, after being too eager to get onto the throttle going into Turn 7, he met with the barriers, ending his errorless streak in F1. A driver’s confidence tends to take a hit when they crash. But more than his confidence, Oscar was concerned about other repercussions.

Oscar Piastri did not want to know how much his crash cost the team

Piastri was featured in a recent episode of The Fellas Podcast, where he briefly talked about how expensive F1 cars are and how a simple crash can affect a team financially. While discussing if he ever has the urge to chase a car down that nudged his just to nudge it back, he said, “Unfortunately, in racecars, especially F1 cars, things break. And they’re very, very expensive too.” While he didn’t nudge another car, the barriers in Montreal sure did a number on his car.

While talking about his crash, he explained, “I crashed for the first time in quite a long time in qualifying. I don’t know how much damage I did. I don’t want to know.” The crash ended a five-year streak of staying away from the walls. But as costly as a crash is to a driver’s confidence, it is just as costly to a team’s finances, which is why he didn’t want to know the extent of his damage.

Read More: “That’s What I Grew Up With”: With a Tough Task Ahead, Unafraid Oscar Piastri Ready To Put the Pedal to the Metal

But after the session, he couldn’t help but look at the car and exclaimed, “After the disappointment of crashing, I was like, ‘That’s an expensive error.'” But repairs were made overnight, and the car was ready for the race. Despite the favorable conditions for McLaren, both cars finished outside the points. As dampening as that must have been for team morale, Piastri is confident McLaren has maximized the package’s potential and looks forward to the weekend in Austria, where McLaren is set to bring significant upgrades.

Oscar Piastri is optimistic about McLaren’s upgrades

After the Canadian GP—and McLaren’s underwhelming race pace—team principal Andrea Stella announced that the Woking team would introduce a major overhaul of upgrades over the next three race weekends in Spielberg, Silverstone, and Budapest. And he has assured everyone that they will be significant ones that will help McLaren become more competitive.

With the first round set to be introduced on Friday, Piastri is excited to test the car at a track he’s used to racing. Given McLaren’s good performances in Austria, he’s hopeful the team will continue its good run of form at the circuit owing to the new upgrades. And given that it’s a sprint weekend, there’ll be more points up for grabs, and Piastri will look to maximize his winnings.

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How do you think Oscar Piastri has fared so far this season?