Piastri battles through challenging Las Vegas Grand Prix
Monday, 25 November 2024
The Australian rookie showed resilience in difficult conditions on the street circuit.
Oscar Piastri faced a tough race at the Las Vegas Grand Prix, managing to secure a P7 finish despite struggling with tyre issues and a penalty.
The Australian rookie showed resilience in difficult conditions on the street circuit.
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From the start, Piastri held his position but soon found himself in a battle, briefly dropping to P9 after being overtaken by Hulkenberg before regaining the spot. The McLaren driver then faced pressure from Hamilton, eventually conceding P8 to the Mercedes driver.
A pivotal moment came when Piastri was handed a 5-second penalty, which he served during a pit stop on Lap 11 while switching to Hard tyres. This setback forced the young driver to push hard to make up lost ground.
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"A very difficult evening, we just struggled with the tyres, so there's definitely some things to look at," Piastri reflected after the race. "I don't think we hoped for a whole lot more than where we finished, but obviously the gap was a bit disappointing."
Despite the challenges, Piastri and his teammate Lando Norris managed to navigate through the field, with both drivers experiencing issues with tyre graining. The team's strategy saw both drivers pitting for fresh sets of Hard tyres to combat the problem.
As the race progressed, Piastri found himself in P7, maintaining his position until the chequered flag. His teammate Norris finished just ahead in P6, with the Briton also securing the fastest lap point in the closing stages.
Team Principal Andrea Stella acknowledged the difficulties faced during the weekend: "Tonight, we can't be happy with the result, because we go racing to finish on the podium, and we go racing to win. We had some headaches with car and tyre performance, and we'll be doing a lot of analysis between here and Lusail."
Looking ahead, Piastri remains optimistic about the upcoming races. "OK points and hopefully the next two are a bit more fun for us," he said, reflecting on the team's prospects for the final rounds of the season.
The young Australian also took a moment to congratulate Max Verstappen on securing his fourth Drivers' Championship, acknowledging the Red Bull driver's dominant performance throughout the year.
Oscar’s Grand Prix by the numbers
- Qualified: 8th
- Race: 7th
- Fastest lap: 1m36.598s on Lap 44 (+1.722s, 13th)
- Points this event: 6
- Points this season: 268 (4th)
