Piastri admits 2025 title-winning techniques have become his "downfall" under new F1 rules

Oscar Piastri has acknowledged that the very techniques which propelled him to title contention during the 2025 Formula 1 season are now undermining his form, as the McLaren driver struggles to adapt to this year’s regulations. Speaking at the FIA press conference ahead of the United States Grand Prix in Austin, the Australian sits seventh in the drivers’ championship with 138 points and has yet to take a grand prix victory in 2026.

Team-mate and reigning champion Lando Norris sits one place ahead of Piastri in the standings but holds a commanding 201 points — a gap of 63 that underlines the contrasting fortunes of the two McLaren drivers this season.

Responding to McLaren Racing CEO Zak Brown’s suggestion that he is returning to his best, Piastri offered a cautiously optimistic assessment. “It certainly was hard to find for a while, but I feel like the last triple-header was definitely more back to where I wanted to be,” he said. “I’m definitely still not at the level I aspire to be at, but I’m back in the ballpark that I should be in.”

Piastri was candid about the nature of the problem, stressing that the issue lies primarily with himself rather than the car. “It’s been a lot of hard work in terms of how I adapt myself to the car, because the things that were working so well for me at points last year are kind of the things that are my downfall in a lot of weekends this year,” he explained. “When you can’t rely on the things that you normally want to rely on, it is always challenging — both in terms of actually adapting, but also, when you’ve been used to something working for you for a long time, trying to go away from that, there’s a mental challenge to that as well.”

He added that attempted fixes have offered limited relief. “We’ve tried various things, but what’s been challenging this year, you can’t quickly fix. Even trying to fix it overall is not an easy thing at all. But over the last few weeks, it’s started to click a little bit more. It’s still very challenging, but we’re finding a way.”

The comments build on Piastri’s admission after a difficult Singapore Grand Prix that McLaren has “no magic answers” this season. Team principal Andrea Stella has also indicated that meaningful changes to the car are unlikely before next year.

McLaren currently sits third in the constructors’ championship, just seven points clear of Red Bull, whose Max Verstappen arrives in Austin on the back of two consecutive race victories. The pressure on the Woking outfit is mounting as F1 enters its American triple-header.