Piastri reveals results bluff after nowhere Friday in Las Vegas

06:49, 21 Nov

bySamson Ero

Oscar Piastri was left scratching his head over the McLaren car's pace following his outing in the second practice session of the Las Vegas Grand Prix.

“It's difficult to know exactly where we sit.”

- Oscar Piastri

The Australian driver, speaking via Sky Sports, concluded the chaotic second practice session under the Nevada lights in 14th place, uncertain about the McLaren car's true pace.

The cautiously optimistic Piastri, however, acknowledged signs of decent overall speed, while noting that other drivers never had the opportunity to set a quick lap.

"FP1 was pretty good, just things to work on. Overall, I felt like it was a pretty good session. In FP2, I did two laps, so it's difficult to know exactly where we sit," he said.

Oscar Piastri during FP2 in Las Vegas - Photo: Race Pictures

"The car has got decent pace, but not that many people had a run on the softs. Plenty of positives and things to look through, though," he added.

The second practice session of the Las Vegas Grand Prix ended in an unusual fashion, as the FIA was forced to throw a red flag just as drivers were heading out for their final push laps on the soft compound tyres, after a marshal spotted a loose manhole at Turn 17.

Piastri’s teammate, Lando Norris, topped the session with a lap time of 1:33.602.

Piastri on McLaren’s improvement in Las Vegas

Despite his cautious optimism, the 24-year-old was confident that the papaya-coloured team had improved its car performance at the Las Vegas circuit compared to the 2024 campaign.

"I think so. Again, it's difficult to know. We changed a few things into FP2, which seemed to feel pretty good. Would I have loved some more laps? Yes. But the track will continue to change quite a bit for the rest of the weekend. We will see what the weather brings and take it from there."

During the 2024 race in Las Vegas, the McLaren team appeared well off the pace of the front-runners, finishing the Grand Prix in sixth and seventh place, respectively.

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