Oscar Piastri believes McLaren can return to fighting regularly for Formula 1 victories during the second half of the 2026 season. Speaking to Formula1.com ahead of the Dutch Grand Prix at Zandvoort, the Australian made clear that recovering the competitiveness shown at the Hungaroring must be the team’s immediate priority.
McLaren resumes its campaign sitting third in the Constructors’ Championship with 220 points. Oscar Piastri is not yet looking too far ahead in the title race, but he believes consistent victories would allow the Woking team to reconsider what remains achievable before the end of the season.
Oscar Piastri wants McLaren fighting for F1 wins again
Oscar Piastri has established a clear order of priorities for McLaren. Before calculating potential championship outcomes, the team must first return to the front and maximise its performance every weekend.
“In terms of results, I would love to be able to challenge for wins again, as I did at the Hungaroring,” Oscar Piastri said. “I think if we can start challenging for wins, then we can start thinking about what we can achieve in the Championship. But first and foremost, we need to make sure we are getting the most out of the car and ourselves every weekend.”
The Hungarian Grand Prix provided encouragement before the summer break, demonstrating that McLaren still has the potential to compete at the front. The challenge at Zandvoort will be to confirm that performance while assessing the team’s latest MCL40 rear-end upgrades.
McLaren understands the performance deficit
There is also a clear awareness inside McLaren of the weaknesses that must be addressed to close the gap to the leading teams. Oscar Piastri stressed that nobody at Woking is underestimating the amount of work still required.
“We’re very conscious and aware of where we sit,” the Australian explained. “We’re under no illusions that we’re lacking some performance, and we really want to recover it. We have good ideas about how we can do that, and I think everybody in the team is hungry to get back to where we were and taste that success again.”
That determination will be especially important at Zandvoort, where the Sprint format gives teams only one practice session before competitive running begins. The narrow, fast circuit and its banked corners will provide an immediate test of whether McLaren has moved closer to the championship leaders during the summer break.
Oscar Piastri draws confidence from McLaren’s 2023 recovery
Oscar Piastri’s confidence is supported by the dramatic recoveries McLaren has already produced in recent seasons. The most obvious example came three years ago, when the team transformed an uncompetitive car into one capable of regularly challenging for podiums.
“Past seasons give me a lot of confidence,” Oscar Piastri said. “If you look at what we managed to achieve as a team in 2023, we were in a much worse position than we are now and we were able to make a huge leap to fight for podiums.”
Oscar Piastri also highlighted his productive relationship with Lando Norris as one of McLaren’s principal strengths. Despite competing against each other on track, both drivers remain focused on helping the team improve the car.
“The way Lando and I work together to make the car faster has not changed,” Oscar Piastri continued. “We have constructive conversations and everyone is pushing towards the same goal. The cars are different, but we have made this step forward before and I am convinced we can do it again.”
The Dutch Grand Prix will provide the first indication of whether that confidence is justified. McLaren has already won twice at Zandvoort, and its unusual rear-wing solution could help the team target another strong result during a demanding Zandvoort Sprint weekend.
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