OSCAR PIASTRI MUST STAY! WHY MCLAREN'S STABILITY BEATS RISKY MOVES TO RED BULL/FERRARI
Oscar Piastri lost the F1 title by 11 points, fueling rumours of an exit. We analyse how controversial team calls, like the Monza position swap, affected his championship bid.
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Despite missing out on the F1 2025 world title, Oscar Piastri should stick with McLaren.
The Australian was a title contender, but after a frustrating season where he lost to teammate Lando Norris, there have been rumours about him leaving McLaren in 2027.
Here’s why McLaren is still the right place for Oscar Piastri:
Piastri led the championship by 34 points after the Dutch Grand Prix in August but finished third behind Norris and Max Verstappen.
His tough run, especially in the Americas, hurt his chances, leading to some conspiracy theories.
There were signs of trouble earlier in the year.
McLaren Racing CEO Zak Brown said the team would let them race, but that wasn't always the case.
Piastri was told to hold position in Melbourne, and Norris passed him due to the strategy in Imola.
This raised doubts: If the team values fairness, why did one driver get a better strategy?
The Hungarian Grand Prix brought up the issue again when Norris won using a different strategy.
Plus, there was the position swap at the Italian Grand Prix. You could argue that Piastri was treated unfairly, despite claims that both drivers were treated equally.
The Italian GP was especially irritating.
Internal talks focused on fairness and how different situations would be handled, with slow stops seen as part of racing.
Yet, in Monza, the team asked Piastri to let Norris pass for second place.
That was a three-point loss, or a six-point swing, and Piastri lost the title by just 11 points in Abu Dhabi.
Piastri has hinted that the Monza call affected his performance in later races. He questioned it at the time but obeyed.
He had a bad weekend in Azerbaijan, crashing in practice and on the first lap after a poor start.
“Monza wasn’t great for me, and there was the pit stop thing,” Piastri said on F1’s Beyond the Grid podcast.
“In Baku, Friday was hard, things weren’t working, and I was trying too hard on Saturday.”
He called it “the perfect storm” of things going wrong.
Then, at the Singapore Grand Prix, the McLarens made contact at Turn 3 on the first lap, followed by a clash with Norris in the US GP Sprint, as the championship turned in his teammate's favour.
There was a feeling that Piastri was being held back by the team for Norris.
Whether true or not, that’s how it looked, leading to rumors that things weren't so good within the team.
Some even suggested Piastri was looking for a way out.
Ferrari and Red Bull were mentioned, but these would be risky moves, given the changes coming in 2026.
New rules could shake up the sport, and no team knows where they’ll stand.
One big plus for McLaren is its stability.
It’s keeping its relationship with Mercedes; both drivers are under contract, and there have been no management changes.
The same can't be said for Audi, Aston Martin, Alpine, Racing Bulls, or Red Bull, while Ferrari seems to have its own problems.
That leaves only McLaren, Mercedes, Williams, and Haas with stability—a valuable thing as new regulations begin.
But that doesn’t promise success.
FERNANDO ALONSO CONFIRMS ZERO PERFORMANCE UPGRADES FOR ASTON MARTIN BEFORE SUMMER BREAK
Fernando Alonso warns fans of zero performance upgrades for Aston Martin until autumn as cockpit vibrations ruin race pace.
Fernando Alonso doesn’t see things getting any better for Aston Martin until the back half of the season. The start of their 2026 F1 run has been downright rough.
Their fresh partnership with Honda just isn’t clicking. Both drivers can’t get out of Q1 in qualifying, and points? Forget it. After four rounds, Aston Martin and Cadillac are stuck at the bottom of the standings with zero points.
It’s not just a lack of speed, either. Alonso and Lance Stroll have been fighting nasty car vibrations all year, so bad that team boss Adrian Newey said after Australia, both drivers were worried about permanent nerve damage in their hands and feet.
Miami didn’t offer any relief. Alonso and Stroll both finished a lap down, 15th and 17th. At 44, Alonso accepts this might be the new normal for a while.
When someone asked if Canada might bring some improvement, Alonso shut it down quickly. "No. Maybe we’ll get a little better on drivability, but not on performance," he said. "We just have to stick together. It’s going to be a tough race.”
He knows these weekends will get repetitive. "We have to face the media every Thursday, Friday, Saturday, and Sunday," he said, and when a journalist apologised, Alonso just shrugged it off: "You’re just doing your job. We drive fast, but the message is the same every week."
Aston Martin doesn’t have upgrades coming until after summer break. Alonso expects Canada and Austria to look just like Miami, and keeping everyone’s frustration in check is the new challenge. Still, he figures the team is staying calm and focused on having a stronger finish to the season.
Looking further ahead, Alonso said last month he’s open to sticking around F1 after his current contract ends. The two-time world champion, who took his titles with Renault in 2005 and 2006, will be close to 450 grands prix by the end of this season.
GEORGE RUSSELL ADMITS ANTONELLI IS "EXCEPTIONALLY QUICK" BUT REFUSES TO CONCEDE TITLE
Kimi Antonelli secured his 3rd straight F1 win in Miami, leaving George Russell 43 seconds behind and 20 points down in the title race. (130 chars)
George Russell isn’t flinching. He’s not ready to let go of the story, even as Kimi Antonelli keeps grabbing headlines. Antonelli’s been tearing it up this season – three straight wins, all from pole – and it’s got people talking. Miami was rough for Russell; he finished fourth, over 43 seconds behind Antonelli. That gap isn’t just big; it’s glaring, and it’s putting some real heat on their rivalry at Mercedes.
Russell isn’t pretending things are fine, but he’s not throwing in the towel either. He gets what Antonelli’s doing and gives props where they’re deserved. “He’s a fantastic driver, and he’s been fast since day one,” Russell said. “You don’t win all those championships as a kid if you’re not quick.” He means it, but he’s also drawing a boundary. Russell still believes in himself, and he’s not giving up on the championship.
“I’ve still got confidence in myself, and I haven’t forgotten how to drive,” he said with a little smile. “It’s just a tricky patch, but we’re only four races in; there’s a lot more to come. We’ll sort things out over the next few weeks.”
That “tricky patch” doesn’t just mean some tough luck; it includes a 20-point deficit and a teammate who won’t stop rewriting history. Antonelli’s winning streak has changed the vibe at Mercedes, at least for now.
Russell knows all about momentum and how it doesn’t always stick around. “He’s got momentum right now; he’s flying,” Russell admitted. “But I’ve won championships myself, and I know momentum swings back and forth all year.” He actually doesn’t seem bothered by the points gap. “Honestly, I’m not even thinking about it,” he said.
It’s a calm answer from a guy who’s been here before, leaning on experience while Antonelli rides his hot streak. Russell keeps saying 'big picture, patience, not panic'.
“I just want to get back on top of the podium,” he said. “I had the pace for the first three races, but this weekend I was nowhere close. It could have gone very differently these last few weeks, and this weekend could’ve just been a blip. But some races in Japan and China didn’t go my way. That’s how F1 goes sometimes.”
Still, confidence doesn’t erase a 20-point gap, not if Antonelli keeps cruising. If Antonelli keeps piling up wins, Russell’s going to have to fight more than just the stopwatch. Losing to your teammate over and over starts to mess with your head. Russell began the season as the guy to beat, but the longer this keeps up, the tougher it gets to grab hold of the story again.
He’s holding firm, for now. But F1 doesn’t wait for anyone. What does Russell call “just a tricky run”? Well, if momentum doesn’t swing his way soon, it could become a whole lot more than that.
