It wasn’t a McLaren that won the Japanese GP, but with second and third place finishes for Lando Norris and Oscar Piastri, the Woking team secured valuable points for the Constructors’ Championship. It was a race where the papaya team tried to challenge Max Verstappen, but the impression was that McLaren lacked just a few thousandths of a second to get closer to the four-time world champion.
Perhaps they could have bet on Oscar Piastri, who in the final stages showed he had a bit more than his teammate, but the Australian’s request was not accepted. Despite the technical strength of the MCL39, today’s race showed that if the best results aren’t achieved in qualifying, the final result isn’t so certain. This result keeps the same gap in the Drivers’ Championship. Norris is still the leader of the World Championship, just one point ahead of Verstappen, with his teammate further behind.
Japanese GP – McLaren, Oscar Piastri: “With the switch, Max was within reach” Oscar Piastri is still convinced he could have overtaken Max Verstappen if McLaren’s pitwall had given him the chance. The Australian, in the final part of the race, closed in on his teammate and asked the team to swap positions as he felt he could attack the Dutchman.
This request was ultimately not granted, but the 2001-born driver knows that yesterday’s qualifying had a significant impact on the final result of this Japanese weekend. Once again, track position proved to be critical for a strong finish. These were his words at the end of the Grand Prix:
“Qualifying was decisive for the final result. I’m happy with what I did in the race because the car had an exceptional pace. However, on this track, track position is crucial. I need to improve in the time attack to secure better opportunities in the future.”
“As for the position swap? I think if I had been given that opportunity, Max would have been within reach,” said the Australian, currently in third place in the Drivers’ Championship. “I made a request to the team, but that’s how it went. I have to accept this position, given how qualifying went.”
Certainly, Oscar Piastri expected a better gift on his birthday. We don’t know how things would have played out without Norris in front, but it seemed the Australian had a bit more today. It seems McLaren is embracing the philosophy of not taking risks and aiming to secure as many points as possible for the Constructors’ Title.
Japanese GP – McLaren, Lando Norris: “It was unthinkable to overtake Max today” On the other side of the garage, a different perspective emerges. According to the Brit, McLaren had nothing special to challenge the four-time world champion. For Norris, yesterday’s qualifying decided today’s result. By just 12 thousandths, the McLaren driver lost pole position and had to chase Verstappen throughout the race.
The only time Norris attempted to attack Max was when exiting the pit lane, when he ended up on the grass, almost compromising his race. According to Norris, his rival did nothing wrong, admitting that what happened is just part of racing. Summing up this weekend, the Bristol-born driver expressed satisfaction with the result achieved in a weekend that wasn’t perfect.
“It was all decided yesterday. Max didn’t make any mistakes today. Our pace was too similar to aim for anything more. It was a long race, we pushed hard and gave a lot. However, we really didn’t have anything special to overtake Max. In the end, it was a great weekend. We didn’t get what we wanted, but we’re fighting in every race. The others are improving, but it’s not bad to come second in a weekend that wasn’t perfect,” concluded the current World Championship leader.
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