Championship leader Oscar Piastri stays focused on Verstappen and Norris as title fight heats up ahead of the Canadian Grand Prix.
Oscar Piastri is not unhappy to be leading the World Championship, with Lando Norris and Max Verstappen behind him in the standings. The McLaren F1 driver believes being in this position confirms what he has achieved.
“I enjoy being the hunted, it means we’re doing things right if we’re in this position. Things have gone well so far, Spain was another example of that. I’m trying to keep the success and momentum going,” said Piastri.
“Lando is my main rival but I don’t rule out Max. The gap is a bit bigger but it’s not insurmountable. We’ll give everything to make the car faster, and for me to be faster, but I would say Lando is my main rival.”
“This weekend should be good and the competition should be close. It’s a tricky circuit and very difficult to drive without making mistakes, very bumpy, there will be a lot of variables that could spice things up and we’ll have competition from teams around us.”
The Australian is hoping for a good weekend in Canada, even though he doesn’t always have the same level of success year after year at a given circuit: “I’ve worked on a lot of things since last year, and that race was probably already good.”
“But ironically, the races that were bad last year have probably been the best so far this year. And some of the races that were good last year haven’t been great, so we’ll see how we do, but I’m expecting a good weekend.”
Piastri is still in the running to become the McLaren driver with the most consecutive podiums, but that’s not what drives him the most: “I know exactly why I’m here, it’s to win a world title.”
“Other statistics like consecutive podiums are cool, but the coolest would be to be world champion. That’s what I’m focused on, others are fun but don’t mean much and don’t give me any points. I try to succeed every weekend and create cooler stats throughout the year.”
Likewise, he would love to become the third Australian driver to be world champion, after Jack Brabham and Alan Jones, but he doesn’t want to rush his season: “It’s a nice stat, I’d be happier to join them as world champion, but it’s a good start.”
“Having five wins in nine races is beyond my expectations, even with a competitive car, but there have been some moments I’d like to relive this season, but overall I’m proud of the work the team and I have done to achieve these kinds of results.”
“Even if those statistics are interesting, that’s not the reason I’m here. I’m here to try to win even more races and fight for the championship, so hopefully there will be cooler statistics in the future.”
Piastri is expecting a successful weekend in Canada: “It’s a track I enjoy, but I’ve been very comfortable with the car all year and I feel like I’m in a good position right now, so I’m expecting to be strong.”
