Oscar Piastri's Bold Move Secures Baku Victory

Oscar Piastri defied team advice and expertly overtook Charles Leclerc to secure a dramatic victory in Baku.

Oscar Piastri clinched the second Formula 1 victory of his career this weekend in Baku, and did so with style, executing a bold overtake on Charles Leclerc before holding off the seemingly faster Ferrari until the end. The Australian admits that he did not hesitate before making this opportunistic manoeuvre.

“This is probably the finest victory of my career. Trying to withstand that pressure for so long in the race was incredibly challenging. In the first stint, as Charles was building a comfortable lead, I thought we would be doing well to finish second. Even Checo was close, and I could see Carlos was very fast at the end of the stint on medium tyres. I saw an opportunity, or half a chance, after the pit stop and I knew I had to try and take it. I knew getting ahead was one thing, but I also knew I had my work cut out to try and stay there because I didn’t feel we were the fastest in that first stint. It was very tough going. You know, I think having clean air helped a lot. But yes, I think for me, this is one of the best races I’ve ever run.”

“Taking the lead at that point in the Grand Prix is what allowed me to win the race. I felt a bit sorry for my race engineer because I tried to do that in the first stint and I completely destroyed my tyres. So my engineer got on the radio and told me not to do it again. And I completely ignored him on the next lap and sent the car inside. I felt that just staying behind and waiting for Charles to pull away was never going to produce anything. I thought we were just securing second place. So, yes, you know, I had a similar opportunity in the first stint. I felt that in the second or third lap, I was, I think, just inside the DRS zone, but I didn’t fully capitalize on that opportunity. At the end of the straight, I thought that if I had done two or three things a little differently, I might have had a chance. So when I had a similar opportunity after the pit stop, I had to seize it. And yes, I wouldn’t be a winner without that.”

“If I hadn’t seized that opportunity, I don’t think I would have had another. I mean, all credit to Charles. He was incredibly fair. He might have thought I was going for a second attempt, but I was pleasantly surprised to find I had made the turn. It was a very risky and committed manoeuvre, but it’s what I had to do to try and win the race because, you know, I wasn’t really keen on finishing second. So I had to try.”

“It was like F1 in the 1950s.”

Faced with a Ferrari quicker than his McLaren F1 this Sunday, Piastri explains that he strategically pushed harder in the twisty sector of the circuit to get some air before the long straight and the DRS zone.

“The key was to hold on in sector 2. I felt that as long as I could keep the lead into turn 1, I could keep Charles behind. Turn 2, I think, was very, very slippery for some reason this weekend. The following straight isn’t long enough for DRS to really make an impact to catch up. For my part, I tried to take a lot of risks in the castle section because I needed to try and extend the gap from turn 7 to the end of the lap. And yes, I had a few close calls between the castle and turn 15. That’s where I really tried to be fast and get a good exit from the last corner.”

“On that note, I think we should both take a picture of us drifting through the last corner. I spoke to Mark (Webber) and he told me it was like F1 in the 1950s. So yes, it was a nice moment to look back on. It wasn’t very fun at the time for either of us, I’m sure. But yes, I tried to maximise the pace up to the end of sector 2, and that’s where I tried to make it work.”

While Lando Norris was instructed to avoid spinning his tyres on corner exits to save his rubber, his garage neighbour indicates that the same was not asked of him.

“No, I didn’t receive the same message. I know exactly what that message means and how it would be communicated. But no, I think they understood that I was doing everything I could to try and keep Charles behind. As far as I’m concerned, I was driving flat out to achieve it. I didn’t have the gap or the space to save my tyres. Of course, I was trying not to destroy them. But yes, when you’re trying to break the DRS, you have to drive flat out. That’s what I did. And in the end, it worked.”

30 “Challenging” Laps to Fend Off Leclerc

After crossing the finish line, Piastri communicated over the radio that he had just endured one of the most stressful afternoons of his career. How, then, did he manage to remain so composed and error-free?

“Once I took the lead, with about two-thirds of the race remaining, I knew that getting to the front was, let’s say, 40% of the job, but keeping it would be the remaining 60%. I was aware that I would be heavily using the tyres to stay ahead, and I understood the kind of impact this had in the first stint, and I just hoped that the clean air would help me maintain the lead. And that probably did happen, but obviously, you lose a lot of time with DRS, so for me, trying to keep Charles behind was incredibly stressful. You know, I couldn’t afford a single mistake. I made a few, but on a circuit like Baku, it’s impossible to push hard and not make any. I was fortunate that they weren’t significant enough to cost me dearly. So, yes, the 30 laps I spent trying to keep Charles behind were incredibly stressful and difficult.”

The Australian driver is now the highest points scorer over the last seven Grands Prix. Does this set his expectations higher for the remaining races?

“Yes and no. I mean… Someone else probably scored the most points over the last eight races. For me, such statistics don’t mean much. I think I had a good run during the European season and am continuing now, but… Yes, it’s not just down to me. Our car has been very quick and consistent in many places. And even though we haven’t necessarily been the fastest everywhere, we’ve had opportunities at every race.”

“And I think this time, we weren’t necessarily the fastest, but we had a car that could put us in contention. We had a pit stop that allowed us to fight. We had teamwork that allowed us to battle. And all that eventually paid off. So yes, it’s obviously not just down to me, but I feel I’ve driven well. You know, this year, I have a bit more affinity with the areas I wanted to work on since last season. If you combine that with a car capable of winning, such results are possible.”