Oscar Piastri led a race for the first time in his career

Oscar Piastri started second in the sprint race after a strong qualifying performance during the shootout on Saturday morning. The McLaren driver took advantage of Verstappen staying on track during the first lap of the race to pit and switch from wet tires to intermediate tires, which were better suited to the track conditions at that point in the sprint race.

Max Verstappen was slower on wet tyres and came out the next lap behind Oscar Piastri’s McLaren. However, the McLaren driver failed to distance himself from the Red Bull, suffering from understeer (poor grip in the front tires).

Max Verstappen was able to overtake Oscar Piastri once the safety car returned after Fernando Alonso’s accident. Piastri settles for this second place, his first top 3 in a race, and above all for having led a race for the first time in Formula 1.

« I am very very happy. We are doing our best. We stopped as soon as the safety car came in. We couldn’t really fight with Max. His pace was very solid. We had three incredible weekends, it makes things very special. » explained Oscar Piastri after the sprint race.

« I can’t thank them enough for everything they do in the team to bring us back to the top. I am very happy to be here. I led my first lap and I will not forget it. »

The safety car came out on track after Fernando Alonso went off track. While this helped prevent his intermediate tires from degrading too much, Max Verstappen had tires in better condition and took the opportunity to overtake Piastri right after the restart.

« I thought the safety car would work in my favor, because the fewer laps I had to do, the better. I had a good restart, but he was already glued to me and anyway, I wouldn’t have been able to keep him behind me. I did my best. There’s still work to be done. This is my first top 3 and I hope I’ll also score big points tomorrow. » finishes the 22-year-old rookie.