The big surprise of the Melbourne weekend
The biggest surprise of the weekend Australian GP it arrived even before the traffic lights went out, when Oscar Piastri he ended up disastrously against the barriers, irreparably damaging his McLaren MCL40 after jumping on the curb exiting Turn 4. An accident certainly never seen before in the dynamics of events, but decidedly unusual if we think that Piastri was not in the race or on a qualifying lap at full speed, but was lining up on the starting grid of the home GP.
The disappointment of Oscar Piastri
“We must evaluate carefully – explains a very disappointed Oscar Piastri to the official microphones of the F1TV recounting the accident that eliminated him from the race in “his” Melbourne, admitting the driving error but also leaving the door open to the hypothesis of a technical problem – but I think I used the curb a little too much in that corner. However, from what we have already seen on the data, I believe that there was a particular reaction from the machine, even if within the rules. In essence, the moment I downshifted I had 100 kW more electric power compared to what I had had all weekend”.
“At that point I had a lot of spinning with the rear tires – adds the 24-year-old from McLaren – And, since I was already on the curb, it was a combination of negative factors that caused the accident. Obviously it is a very very disappointing result. Does it hurt me? Well, a lot. It’s a real shame for me. Of course, you never want things like this to happen anywhere, but even more so in your home race, which makes the situation even more unpleasant“The curse therefore continues according to which none of the many Australian drivers who have raced in Formula 1 have ever managed to be a prophet in their homeland. For Oscar Piastri it is the first retirement in the Australian GP, while in the past they had achieved an eighth, a ninth and a fourth place (in the 2024 edition) as the best result.
