Oscar Piastri in freefall as McLaren star struggles for answers after Dutch Grand Prix

Alarm bells are ringing for the Australian, who impressed so much in the first half of the 2025 season only to see his challenge fade and Norris clinch the title.

In 2026, there was a feeling that he would be hardened from that experience and been in position to lead from the front once again, however the stark reality has been entirely different and Piastri is feeling dejected.

“I don’t really have any more answers than that at the moment,” he admitted after the race when asked to explain his lack of pace.

Piastri’s afternoon had actually begun encouragingly. After Max Verstappen’s opening-lap crash forced a red flag, the Australian made an excellent restart, overtaking George Russell to move into third. For a while, it looked as though he might emerge as a genuine threat to the leaders.

Then everything unravelled. A slow pit stop cost Piastri valuable track position, but even he insisted that the problem went deeper than the McLaren crew’s mistake. Once the race settled down, he simply could not match the pace of Norris, while Ferrari’s Charles Leclerc and Lewis Hamilton both found ways past him.

“After that I had nothing,” Piastri said. “I don’t know why, but plenty to look into.” And that is perhaps the most concerning part.

A bad pit stop can be fixed. A poor strategic call can be corrected. But if a driver cannot identify why his car suddenly stops responding, finding a solution becomes considerably more complicated as he chases answers.

Piastri has now gone eight Grands Prix without a podium, a remarkable slide for a driver who won seven races in 2025 and pushed Norris all the way for the world championship.

Meanwhile, Norris appears to be rediscovering his best form. The reigning world champion converted pole into victory at Zandvoort, following his Hungarian Grand Prix triumph before the summer break. He has now won two races in succession and is the only non-Mercedes driver with multiple victories this season.

Norris is extracting enough from the McLaren to beat Mercedes and reduce his championship deficit. Piastri is struggling even to stay ahead of Ferrari.

McLaren team principal Andrea Stella offered an optimistic interpretation into his drivers' contrasting fortunes, arguing that sixth place was “not a fair reflection” of Piastri’s competitiveness throughout the weekend and insisting there is more performance to extract.

There is also the reality that Piastri’s season has not been defined solely by poor driving. Strategy problems, reliability issues and team decisions have all contributed to his frustration.

Nonetheless, with Norris winning again and Kimi Antonelli stretching his championship lead to 59 points, Piastri finds himself fighting to remain relevant in the title conversation.

The Australian still has time to turn it around. McLaren’s latest upgrades appear to have improved the car, and Piastri himself remains hopeful that the team can move forward. But can he rediscover the combination that made him look almost unstoppable last year.