Oscar Piastri believed he had identified a major shift in how to drive Formula 1 cars in 2026. After a season start below expectations, the McLaren driver said he needed to adapt his driving style to extract more performance from the new generation of cars.
The Australian arrives at the summer break with only 92 points and without a podium since the Miami Grand Prix. Beyond the lack of competitiveness of the MCL40 compared to its main rivals, Piastri has also been frequently outpaced by his teammate, Lando Norris, who qualified ahead in seven of the last eight sessions, with Monaco as the only exception.
The scene contrasts with last season, when Piastri won six races in the first half of the championship and reached the break leading the standings, in sync with the car from the previous generation.
According to the Australian, the changes introduced in the 2026 technical regulations, both in chassis and power units, forced the drivers to relearn how to drive the cars, and he believes it took longer than he would have liked to find this new path.
“We are having to discover many new things and new ways to extract performance from the car and from ourselves,” he said.
Piastri explained that, initially, he ended up reverting to habits developed in previous seasons, something that does not always work with the current cars.
“It is very easy to fall into your normal rhythm and do things the way you have always done, but that does not always work on these cars. I think Barcelona was a clear example of that,” he said.
The driver revealed that he began changing his approach at the Austrian Grand Prix when he decided to try a different way of driving.
“In Austria I felt I needed to challenge myself a bit more, try new things and simply drive in a somewhat different way,” he concluded.
