F1 2026, Spanish Grand Prix, results: Oscar Piastri market concerns as McLaren struggles laid bare, reaction
Australian F1 driver Oscar Piastri has come under heavy scrutiny following an underwhelming performance during Sunday’s Barcelona-Catalunya Grand Prix.
Piastri, a title contender last season, finished fifth at the Circuit de Catalunya, crossing nearly 35 seconds after McLaren teammate Lando Norris, his biggest finish-line deficit of the season. The 25-year-old, who won last year’s Spanish Grand Prix, almost certainly would have placed seventh if not for the late retirements of Kimi Antonelli and Charles Leclerc.
Seven-time world champion Lewis Hamilton secured his first victory since joining Ferrari ahead of the 2025 season, with Piastri admitting the Italian team was “a step ahead” of McLaren.
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“This weekend with all their new parts, clearly they’re working well,” Piastri said after the race.
“I think also in a race like today where the grip is so low, the tyres are so fragile. I think it probably plays to the strengths of their car as well.
“I think they’ve got a lot of downforce. Probably the most downforce out of everybody. But also a lot of drag.
“But when you need to protect the tyres, I think that helps you.
“So clearly some work for us to do, clearly some work for me to do, because it was not an easy race.”
McLaren team principal Andrew Stella also acknowledged the “difficulties” the Woking-based team has faced this year.
“We saw a definite step forward today in our ability to compete with the front-runners, which is encouraging after the difficulties we faced in the last couple of races,” he said.
“It’s good news that we were able to stay with Mercedes, and we can take positives from our improved reliability this weekend.
“However, Ferrari has clearly made significant performance gains, with recent upgrades now positioning them as race winners. Therefore, as competitors, we know there is more to do.”
Piastri is currently sixth on the drivers’ standings with 68 points, five behind Norris, while McLaren sits third on the constructors’ championship, below Ferrari and Mercedes.
The Melburnian still leads Norris 4-3 in both qualifying and race results — partly because the British driver has had two retirements this season — but Piastri’s struggles haven’t gone unnoticed.
“Not going too well for him as of late. His market value has taken a bit of a plunge in the last weeks and months,” former Mercedes driver Nico Rosberg said on Sky Sports.
“A bit unexpected because last year he was really on a par with Lando all the time, and this year Lando has jumped ahead somewhat.
“With these new regulations, new cars, Oscar is not feeling too comfortable yet. So it’s a bit strange and he really needs to work on that now because he’s falling down.”
Former F1 world champion Jacques Villeneuve continued: “Well we saw the trend last year. Halfway through the season he was the talk of the paddock, like it’s great they signed him because he showed it in Formula 3, Formula 2 – amazing,” Villeneuve said on Sky Sports.
“And then he collapsed, and his form went down, and he hasn’t recovered. It’s really odd.
“And nobody’s talking about him anymore. And that’s in the space of what? Like six months. Even less.
“It’s very odd. But like we often say, you’re only as good as your last race. That’s what’s tough with sports.
“Unless you’re Lewis and you’ve won so many championships and so on. Then, okay, you get there’s something you can lean on.
“But otherwise, two, three bad races, and okay, move on.”
The F1 season resumes with the Austrian Grand Prix on Sunday, June 28.
