Piastri makes major admission after yet another difficult weekend

After qualifying, the Australian had said he hoped to unlock more potential from the car in the race — a question that naturally came up again afterwards, and one he didn’t shy away from answering.

“Difficult to say,” Piastri admitted. “I think maybe a little bit better, but it wasn’t so much the pace of the car, because clearly the car was pretty quick this weekend. It was more just trying to unlock it, and I felt like I potentially made some steps in doing that today.

The Australian admitted that the setbacks he’s faced in recent weekends have served as valuable lessons for him to learn from: “Certainly been a learning experience, that’s for sure, For some reason, the last couple of weekends have required a very different way of driving. What’s worked well for me in the last 19 races — I’ve needed something very different these last few weekends, and trying to wrap my head around why has been a bit of a struggle.

Finally, when asked how he plans to regain the championship lead, Piastri kept it brief: “Find some more pace and win some more races.”

Unlike his teammate, Lando Norris managed to put McLaren back on top — and did so in the dominant fashion the Woking team has made its trademark for much of this season.

The Brit claimed pole position in emphatic style, only briefly challenged in the first Q3 attempt by Charles Leclerc’s strong lap, which was soon obliterated by Norris’s flying run.

Come race day, there was simply no contest: Norris controlled proceedings from start to finish, crossing the line a full 30 seconds clear of second place. Here’s how the international media celebrated the Briton’s stunning weekend in Mexico.