F1 | Rookie errors and championship pressure: Oscar Piastri’s tough Baku weekend. Oscar Piastri struggles in Baku with three major errors.

Piastri, Baku, and a paradox: playing with fire can burn you

No sugarcoating it: Oscar Piastri’s weekend in Baku was absolutely embarrassing. The Australian made three rookie-level mistakes—a crash into the wall at Turn 3 in qualifying, a jump start, and a wall hit at Turn 5 on the first lap—hardly the kind of errors expected from a current championship leader.

Paradoxically, the 2001-born driver “chose” the perfect weekend to score his first zero points after 44 races in the points. He “chose” the same weekend when Lando Norris was virtually invisible.

Lando misses out while Max seizes the opportunity

Lando Norris finished the Azerbaijan Grand Prix in seventh place, earning only six points over his teammate in the standings. His gap to Piastri remains 25 points, but it could have been far smaller if the Briton had delivered a strong weekend.

Instead, with an error on his crucial Q3 lap and an anonymous race—also affected by an imperfect pit stop—Norris missed a big chance. And he even denied it. When asked once again if Baku had been a wasted opportunity, the McLaren driver replied: “I don’t know why everyone keeps asking me, but no.”

Meanwhile, Max Verstappen fully exploited his chance, delivering a Grand Slam: pole position, leading every lap to victory, and fastest lap in the race.

The impact of Oscar Piastri’s mistakes

Oscar Piastri’s serious errors, paradoxically, had little effect on the direct comparison between the two McLarens, but they could become decisive if Red Bull proves increasingly competitive in the closing stages of the season. The newly fitted RB21 floor has proven crucial in recent races and could potentially shake up the final stretch of the championship.

Looking ahead

While Max Verstappen hopes to maintain the level of car performance seen in Monza and Baku, one thing is certain: Oscar Piastri gambled big in Azerbaijan. Paradoxically, he got away with it this time, but rookie mistakes like these must be avoided for the rest of the year. If Lando Norris doesn’t capitalize, Max Verstappen certainly will.