Oscar Piastri, McLaren F1 driver, expressed his surprise at the various strategic choices made by the top ten drivers during the Japanese Grand Prix. Piastri found it unexpected that Charles Leclerc, from Ferrari, opted for a one-stop strategy, as he believed his own MCL38 car would not be able to handle the high degradation. The race was momentarily interrupted due to an accident involving Daniel Ricciardo and Alex Albon, allowing teams to change their starting tires for the restart. While McLaren kept the medium compound, Mercedes decided to switch to the hard compound in an attempt at a one-stop strategy, but their slow pace in the beginning prevented it from being successful. Piastri admitted that some of the strategies used were surprising and that there were lessons to be learned from them. He also mentioned that McLaren struggled with pace throughout the race.
The rise in track temperature had a significant impact on tire degradation, which played a crucial role in determining each team’s strategy. Despite his difficulties in keeping up with his more experienced teammate in Suzuka, Piastri did not believe McLaren was one of the teams most affected by tire wear. He acknowledged that it was difficult to determine the exact impact on each team’s performance due to the lack of long races before the event. Piastri expressed disappointment in not being closer to Ferrari and Red Bull, but remained optimistic about the upcoming races.
Piastri also discussed his battle with Fernando Alonso during the race. He noted that Alonso was strategically using his energy to prevent Piastri from overtaking him. Piastri acknowledged the challenges of following closely in these cars and believed it was a smart strategy by Alonso. He had some tough moments with George Russell, but ended up making a mistake that allowed Russell to pass him. Piastri admitted to struggling in turbulent air.
Finally, Piastri addressed an incident in the final stages of the race, where he cut the chicane and held his position when Russell tried to overtake him on the inside. Piastri considered it a racing incident and believed that Russell finishing ahead of him made the result fair.
