Oscar Piastri has admitted that the first half of his 2026 Formula 1 season has contained “more lows than highs”, with both the Australian and McLaren struggling to reproduce the form that made them championship contenders last year. After another frustrating retirement in Hungary, Piastri is now targeting greater consistency when the season resumes after the summer break.
The 2026 campaign marked the beginning of a completely new technical era for Formula 1, and Piastri entered it only months after narrowly missing out on the World Championship in 2025. His new season could hardly have started in more difficult circumstances, however, as he failed to complete a racing lap in either of the opening two rounds.
Oscar Piastri admits there have been ‘more lows than highs’ in 2026
After that difficult opening, Oscar Piastri appeared to be recovering quickly. He secured podium finishes in the following two races and briefly looked capable of returning to regular contention near the front.
McLaren subsequently went through a decline in competitiveness, however, and Piastri’s third place in Miami remains his most recent podium. The Woking team has since worked to recover performance, including through important floor changes that improved the MCL40 in Hungary.
“There have been highs and lows, for sure,” Oscar Piastri told media including RacingNews365. “Probably more lows than highs, unfortunately. For us as a team, it’s obviously not been the first half of the year that we would have liked, especially compared to last year.”
“Hopefully the second half of the year can be better.”
Hungarian GP ends in another disappointment for Piastri
The Hungarian Grand Prix offered Oscar Piastri the opportunity to end the first half of the championship on a much more positive note. The Australian was fighting for victory and had led the race before the decisive pit-stop phase changed the situation.
Piastri lost valuable time while lapping Carlos Sainz after the two made contact, allowing team-mate Lando Norris to gain the advantage during the pit-stop sequence. The incident damaged Piastri’s chances of retaining the lead and added another complication to a race in which McLaren finally showed much stronger performance.
The afternoon then ended in the worst possible way for Piastri, who was forced to retire and entered the summer break with another disappointment rather than the victory he had been fighting for.
Despite the setback, Hungary provided evidence that McLaren’s development work is beginning to produce results. The team has also benefited from progress on the power-unit side, having credited Mercedes HPP for an important step in its 2026 performance.
Piastri wants greater consistency in second half of F1 season
Oscar Piastri is already looking ahead rather than dwelling on the frustrations of the first 11 rounds. His main objective is to reach his best level more consistently during the remaining races.
“For myself as well, there have been some good moments, some not-so-good moments and pretty much everything in between,” Piastri said. “I want to be able to improve and be a bit more consistently on top of my game, and hopefully we can do that in the second half of the year.”
The challenge is very different from the one he faced 12 months ago. After coming so close to the 2025 World Championship, Oscar Piastri has spent much of 2026 dealing with technical setbacks, missed opportunities and a McLaren package that has not consistently allowed him to fight at the front.
There are nevertheless signs of progress. Lando Norris’ victory in Hungary demonstrated that McLaren can once again challenge for wins when the MCL40 operates in the right window, while further development work remains important as the team tries to close the gap to the leading cars. The latest developments can be followed through the GP-News McLaren section.
For Oscar Piastri, the second half of 2026 will therefore be about turning isolated strong weekends into sustained form. The Australian has already experienced both ends of the Formula 1 title fight; now his immediate target is to rediscover the consistency that made him one of the championship’s leading drivers in 2025.
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