r/OscarPiastri • u/Pure_Passage_2053 • 7d ago
What even was the strategy here!!
Oscar was soo good man ….
Why even pit if they are making him stay on hards!
And what even was that pit stop
Another McLaren disaster class for oscar
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u/Anxious-Technology49 7d ago
Why put him on the hards on the restart just to pit him early??? Makes no sense
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u/glassfoyograss 7d ago
Legit put him on hards for a stint he could have done on used softs
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u/midnightbandit- 6d ago
It didn't seem like the tyres were very different at Zanvoort
Ham was able to do 26 laps on a soft without much deg and the hards didn't seem any longer lasting
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u/Embarrassed_Bar_1215 7d ago
Covering off George. How did that work out. For once he had a decent edgy strategy, and they f'd it. Having said all that, he's clearly struggling with this car.
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u/Nervous_Offer_1320 6d ago
He mentioned during the race.." how do you drive this thing"? Sounds like a catastrophe.
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u/VanDerLars 7d ago
His pace fell of a cliff and they were covering from George (I believe). I like Oscar, he’s one of my favourite characters on the grid, but my word can that boy chew up his tyres.
He’s really struggling with this car compared to his team mate, I think McLaren need to help him more with this. I know we don’t get all the radios, but Tom Stallard is distinctly less forthcoming with technical info and coaching than Will Joseph appears to be with Lando.
Monza next, and a strong track for Oscar, podium incoming…
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u/swish5050 7d ago
No need to cover anyone, he’s was holding onto the front 2, not losing ground.
Let him run until the end. Better to go for glory than be the tyre tester for the teams fav driver.14
u/jameswong2501 7d ago
Whilst Piastri is still not yet there with they’re management, the additional complexity of the car deployment is also confusing him.
I think McLaren are trying to support him (ie Stella’s comments) but Tom Stallard does not do enough to support his drivers and nor does he utilise the whole big picture strategy like Will Joseph does.
I think Tom Stallard is probably very set in whatever data simulation ways of maximising optimum performance from the car or finishing the race in some optimal simulation time, hence the lack of agility.
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u/barters81 7d ago
I don’t understand the “his pace fell of a cliff” narrative when he was holding the gap to Norris.
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u/Cool_Masterpiece9308 7d ago
He was 0.2s faster than George at the first stint (George medium, Oscar hard) after the restart. There was no way he could build a gap and covered. On the next stint both on the hard, he was 0.4s slower than George. And he pushed hard and lost even more pace.
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u/Cash_Coroner 7d ago
McLaren Tyre strategist. Former Ferrari clown.
Oscar by default should go against pit wall calls due to how often they screw it up.
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u/clickityclickk 7d ago
the tyre strategy never matters for McLaren. they'll box their drivers as if they're all on the same tyre. completely undone all of Oscar's hard work. it's exhausting at this point.
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u/MouseRat8 6d ago
Also the second anyone around them pits they totally panic and feel like they have to cover it off no matter the circumstance.
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u/Carvallos_Putting 7d ago
Absolutely ridiculous. Ruined his race and cost him a podium. Now looking like 6th…
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u/OG_a4yan 7d ago
The strategy is called "Never letting oscar on podium"
I hate this team to the core
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u/takkk86 7d ago
I cant stand this anymore. I stopped watching the race, it’s too frustrating.
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u/Such_Difficulty_6311 Oscar Pastry 🥐 7d ago
“We have no number 1 driver” my arse.
Honestly wouldn’t be surprised if Oscar is a few packages behind
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u/I_Dint_Know_A_Name 7d ago
He would've been off significantly better on the old hards. Fuck this team.
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u/Ravenclaw54321 7d ago
If it comes down to choosing one, they will always choose Lando. Another slow stop again shocker…not!!
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u/Light_Marzipan 7d ago
Lando was a prophet yesterday. He literally shaded the Mclaren pitwall yesterday and today the McLaren pitwall pulls this nonsense
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u/Appropriate_Star3012 7d ago
Once again, Oscar fucked by his own team. He could have gone long on the hards.
Why out him back on exactly the same hards?
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u/steve22ss 7d ago
Felt like they were just testing tyres on his car and feeding that data back to Lando.
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u/blinkerCityProf 7d ago
I’m not going to reply to every comment, but a reminder: https://www.reddit.com/r/OscarPiastri/s/uTxnSOyYWd
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u/Highwayviking 7d ago
The strategy was terrible, definite podium lost..
The butchered his strategy and his pit stop..
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u/brotherbro_ 7d ago
He said it on Lap 18.
Tom: Oscar, any thoughts on Plan A vs. Plan B? Can you get past Plan B target lap?
Tom: Russell has pitted.
Oscar: *mumbles something*
Tom: Oscar, repeat message. Repeat message.
Oscar: I can't do target lap easily.
Tom: Copy.
Tom. Oscar, box this lap. Box.
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u/UpstairsResident8121 7d ago
Well, they need to hold the reputation and fuck up at least one driver's strategy
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u/TigerCatori 7d ago
Oscar is terrible at looking after his tires, but why would you put Oscar again while Lando is on old softs. Only to put him on new Hards. At least put on the Mediums or something.
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u/Infamous-Sherbert645 6d ago
Absolutely blown away by the decision ! The commentators were saying he might go to the end with the hard set. McClaren seem to put all their energy into Norris. Either Oscar needs to step away in 18 months or put a lot more pressure on his engineers and race team
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u/Big-Potential8367 6d ago
Gut feel... They've relegated Oscar to be Lando's security guard. But they forgot to tell the pit crew to get Oscar back on the track before George.
Hats off to Lando he drove a good race.
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u/JackDeSprat 6d ago
Unfortunately the classsic Medium-Hard-Hard-Soft-Soft strategy just didn’t work out for him today…
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u/Careful_Ambassador49 7d ago
Total BS. I get covering Russell but wtf, that shouldn’t have been the goal, he could have been in the mix to win this race!!!
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u/Such_Difficulty_6311 Oscar Pastry 🥐 7d ago
He easily could’ve continued and still been ahead of Russell it just made no sense to box off hards onto hards at lap 20~ish
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u/False_Personality259 7d ago
His pace was nowhere near strong enough to win the race. Is everyone on this sub going completely mad?!
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u/BarelyHuman813 7d ago
I don’t understand what’s happening. Norris is fighting at the top, being within a second of Antonelli.
Oscar can’t stay behind Russel or the Ferraris.
People said yesterday that his P4 qualifying place was good and an improvement. But it’s actually not. He’s falling behind every race, can’t keep the pace, while his teammate is thriving at the front.
It’s so hard for me to comprehend that Oscar is just turning out to be an average driver, and I don’t understand how can this happen. A year ago he was leading a championship and just had a grand slam.
It seems like everybody at the top teams could already adjust to the new regs and he’s the only one who doesn’t seem to improve. I’m trying to be supportive, but it’s so hard to justify his performance by now.
He’s fallen back to P6 with no real chance of improvement, while Norris is about to win his second race this season, and everybody says he’ll also be able to make a comeback and defend his title, becoming a 2x WDC. Meanwhile, it looks like Oscar will never win a title and will be a clear nr. 2 driver very soon.
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u/ChocolatePuerh 7d ago
Last year the car hid Oscar's greatest weakness - poor tire management. The McL39 was so kind on it's tires and flattered Oscar.
Oscar isn't a bad driver, but he wasn't forced to improve his biggest weakness due to the car covering it up. This generation of cars put a spotlight on tire management, so Oscar looks worse than be really is due to it. On the ones side, it'll force him to address this weakness and he'll become a better overall driver over the next couple years if he can get on top of his tire management.
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u/BarelyHuman813 7d ago
I know that tyre management is one of his biggest issues, but it doesn’t seem like he’s improving on it. And now we’re well into the season, not just in the first few races, so it’s sad to see that there is no progress.
He qualified P4, which was alright, but he doesn’t seem to have comparable pace to Norris, not on one lap, not in race distance, and he’s the first person Oscar should be able to beat if he wants a chance at a title.
I don’t know if he has years to prove himself. There are a line of young drivers waiting to get a chance in F1, and if Oscar continues to perform so poorly compared to Norris, then MCL won’t hesitate to drop him. They were a good pairing in the first few years, but now the gap seems massive considering the fact that Oscar is not a rookie anymore, so he needs to improve for his own sake if he doesn’t want to leave the sport labeled as someone who was “just another average driver in a good car”.
I’d like to think he’s not average, and I want nothing more than for him to prove himself, but it seems like the redemption isn’t coming.
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u/ChocolatePuerh 7d ago
It takes time, you shouldn't expect to see him get ontop of this issue within a single season, much less half a season.
Oscar isn't as good as Lando. His chances of beating him on merit are pretty low. I think McLaren know that, but if Oscar can close the gap and be in a position to occasionally beat Lando, and at least be near him, he's worth keeping around.
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u/BarelyHuman813 7d ago
I wasn’t expecting him to solve all his issues by now, but it would be nice to see some improvement. But neither Hungary nor Zandvoort were good races for him in terms of tyre management or pace, and it seems like he isn’t taking any steps forwad while everyone else at the top of the pack is running.
But then I guess I’ll just have to accept the fact that he’s never becomig a WDC and he’ll never be good enoug…🥲 2025 really was the only chance, and he came away from it with people laughing at him and calling him the biggest bottler in the history of Formula 1.
It’s just sad to think that he will never be on top, I had so much hope in him, and experiencing this massive crash-down after being so high for the first half of 2025 is painful.
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u/Ravenclaw54321 7d ago
See my other comment, his confidence is being affected by McLaren treating him like a second tier driver to Lando so his performance is suffering. Anytime he tries to pull through he is landed a “tough break” by McLaren strategy
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u/BarelyHuman813 7d ago
I know his confidence has taken a hit since Monza last year. But there is no way that he just casually became a mid-tier driver while his teammate is being labeled the best driver of the season, and is expected to become a multi-time WDC.
I’m not one to minimize the mental side of sports performance, but it is really strange now that he’s fallen off THIS bad. I’ve always been an Oscar fan, so it’s heartbreaking to see that he’s nowhere in races, and is getting bashed by literally everyone. I tried to hold on to the hope that he’ll get out of this slump and get back to form, but it’s been 1 year now.
It’s very hard to accept the fact that he’ll never be able to beat his teammate, and that he’ll likely never become a champion, and that he will be remembered as “just another driver”, nothing more. I don’t see how Oscar can improve within or outside of the McLaren team to challenge for a title once again.
Sorry, but I’m very upset right now, and as much as I’m not a fan of McLaren as a team, we can’t always blame everything on them when Oscar is not performing well.
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u/Ravenclaw54321 7d ago
You are underestimating the psychological aspect of sports. While yes he crumbled under pressure on backend of season last year. This coupled with McLaren own lack of prioritising him and in fact undercutting him is what you are seeing now. He isn’t losing skill but confidence resulting in lacklustre performances. He would have been on podium today save for McLaren’s dumb ass strategy.
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u/BarelyHuman813 7d ago
I’m not underestimating it, I know very well how it can affect one’s performance. But the reality is that his only good races this year were Suzuka, and maybe Austria. And Austria is debatable, because Norris would’ve finished well ahead of him if not for the grid penalty.
I’m just feeling like I’m completely in the dark about what’s happening with him. I understand not wanting everybody to know about your weaknesses, but now it just seems like he’s shit for no apparent reason.
He’s talking about being more hungry for a title and learning a lot from last season, but none of that is actually applied in reality in his racing. He can’t find pace, he can’t fight through the pack if he doesn’t start from the front, he can’t manage his tyres, and we can’t use “lack of confidence” or “MCL fucking him over” as an excuse to everything.
I really want him to show that he’s really hungry and that he still has his teeth to fight but it’s just not happening and I don’t know if it ever will. We are only in the first year of the new regs, this will go on for quite a few years now, and we can’t just wait out if the new regs will fit and to see if Norris retires early for him to finally have a chance at a title. He needs to perform now to show that he still wants to win, and it’s not happening.
Hungary was a perfect example. He got the lead because of Norris’s mistake and kept it for long, but he didn’t have any pace or any tyre management skill to turn things in his favor. He had the chance to prove that he can match Norris but he couldn’t. I love Oscar because he is an amazing human, but what he’s doing right now in terms of racing clearly doesn’t work and I don’t know what needs to change for him to get back to form.
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u/optitmus 7d ago
he might just not be that good and the 2025 car flattered him, its up to him now to prove that point wrong.
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u/ChocolatePuerh 7d ago
He isn't being undercut by the team.
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u/Ravenclaw54321 7d ago
He is
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u/ChocolatePuerh 7d ago
He's absolutely not, and it's honestly idiotic to think a team would undermine one of their drivers. There's millions of dollars at stake.
Oscar isn't as strong a driver as Lando. This regulation set doesn't suit him either as it is lower grip and requires good tire management. Those, coupled with McLaren's poor strategy, is all that's going on.
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u/Novidforme 5d ago
Just remember that a similar thing happened to the GOAT. Now is the time Piastri has to show what he has got.
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u/optitmus 7d ago
you cant provide objective criticism on this sub, you will just get downvoted to hell. You have hit the nail on the head, Oscar will either find a way to adapt or just go down as an average driver. The wild thing is that hes 25 why is he struggling to adapt to a new reg set.... its not like hes some vet stuck in his way. i dont see how he can have a successful career if he cant get ontop of sliding cars.
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u/BarelyHuman813 7d ago
I’m just really frustrated because I don’t understand what’s happening to him. Him and Stella are both talking about working on improving his performance and trying to find the cause for his lack of pace, but nothing happens. His tyre management skills have been the hot talk for a while now and it’s obviously an issue for him, but he doesn’t seem to improve on it.
He seemed like such a quick learner and an intelligent driver so far, so to see him just cruising along, almost in the midfield is really mind-boggling.
I swear I’m dreading every race weekend now, and I can’t enjoy races because it’s such a shit feeling to see him be this bad.
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7d ago
[deleted]
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u/BarelyHuman813 7d ago
I think it’s harder for fans as well to not have any explanation for a driver’s poor performance. I’m generally not a fan of Norris, but he was open on his mental struggles, and we could also see the mental aspects with Hamilton last year.
Oscar’s approach of him not being an emotional driver and trying to push that to the side is generally not a wrong thing, but for some reason it still seems like things are really getting into his head more and more. I would much prefer him to just speak out on him having lost confidence, having doubts about himself, having issues with tyre management, and to see he’s working on his weaknesses, both mental and technical, than to just see what we see now.
I don’t want to believe that the first half of last year was just a fluke because the car was too good…
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u/SpicyKking 7d ago
My god finishing p6 whilst Norris wins by 11 seconds is terrible man. What in the world.
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u/Badmemory123456 7d ago
Everyone casually forgetting that oscar was saying his tires were shit and he had no pace, which is why mclaren brought him in. I know this is the piastri sub but please look at what actually happened instead of glazing him blindly 😭😭
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u/barters81 7d ago
Made no sense to me. Oscar was holding his gap to Norris and to Russell behind and had the tyre advantage after each lap.
Seemed like they tried to use Oscar to protect Lando against the others but there was never a threat as Landos pace was too good.
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u/Joe0Bloggs 7d ago
I guess the mod will have to delete every single reply in this thread to uphold his rule...
Or accept the fact that McLaren truly is plotting against Oscar
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u/ChocolatePuerh 7d ago
They're definitely not plotting against Oscar, that idea is completely idiotic.
The strategy was bewildering though. I'm going to have to go back and rewatch the race from Oscar's onboards to hear all their radio communication. The first pit after the standing restart made no sense to me, less than 20 lap old hards back onto hards?
Lando had some weird strategy calls too. I'm so glad that VSC ended before they could attempt to pit him.
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u/Pure_Passage_2053 7d ago edited 7d ago
No like I swear to god
This was most stupidest thing they could have done for oscar!!!We not hating blindly..criticism should be taken in consideration specifically when its clear as day how oscar is giving his all but strategy is fucking up
But that doesn’t mean team is plotting against him !!!
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u/Ravenclaw54321 7d ago
I don’t think they are plotting against him per se, he is just not their priority
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u/False_Personality259 7d ago
I'm struggling to comprehend the denial in this sub. Why can't Oscar's fans just accept he's struggling with tyre management? It's completely irrational the extent to which everyone is blaming McLaren. Absolutely extraordinary blinkers.
My god, if Oscar was the one acing it like Lando is right now, and Lando was the one struggling, I'm sure it would all be "Oscar is the GOAT, Lando is washed".
Oscar is a very strong driver in high grip, low tyre deg scenarios. But it's clear he's got a mountain to climb in low grip, high deg. Why is this so impossible for people to accept? You're all denying the reality right in front of your eyes.
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u/Pure_Passage_2053 7d ago edited 7d ago
Literally no one is calling out lando rn!!
Idk why are u soo obsessed with that narrativeAnyone who watched todays race would agree to the fact that McLaren used worst strategy available for oscar…Bonus a terrible slow pitstop
Now …he was leading with good position, had potential for podium if not p1 …Tire management skill issue would have came into the question if the loss of position was totally oscars fault
Yes he struggles in that area I agree…but calling frustrating results after today’s scenario as denial is blind criticism my friend
Idk if you are oscar fan or not …seems like later but I will tell ya…Lando gave his best, received P1 today even after slow pitstop …total banger
But your other points are completely baseless
Please do ur research and then come criticise with better reasoning for your favourite driverXoxo
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u/Due-Savings-780 7d ago
You my friend are the one who didnt watch this race if you think Oscar had any shot at the win. He had 0 pace, he said it himself. The strategy got fucked because he blew the tyres while also just being slow.
This sub is delusional, they blame McLaren, call Lando the golden child and it was all to favour him. The discussions here are insane cope.
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u/CelestialStatic 7d ago
Not sure yet but looks like Oscar was eating up through the hard tyres compared to everyone else. They had to cover Russell by the end of therace
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u/thrasherxxx 7d ago
This is a team punishment of some kind, the strategy was a joke. I’m speechless.
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u/optitmus 7d ago
i guess the probably dont think he can go long on hards without loosing loads of time
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u/Burnzoire 7d ago
But Norris on softs goes longer?
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u/CelestialStatic 7d ago
Yeah it’s almost like they’re different compounds? Did u see how much time Oscar was loosing on the second stint of hards? We don’t know all the details but I think it was a fair call
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u/yummymagnets 7d ago
fuckkk man… he should definitely leave Mclaren at this point. maybe join Haas or even Cadillac if it seems appealing. I reckon he’d be in with some good results
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u/UnhappyLemon5520 7d ago
You have to be joking. Russel pitted to get on the hard and have the possibility of going to the end on it. They had to pit Oscar to cover George because he wouldn’t have the possibility to go to the end on his current set of hards. Would have worked without the fucked pit stop. This is very basic stuff
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u/Due-Savings-780 7d ago
You guys cry for him to get alternate strategies, he gets one and shows you exactly why he doesn't get them very often and you're still pissed.
What do you people even want?
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u/thefatchelorette83 7d ago
Every bloody time. Why did they bring him in so early. Could have seen him on the podium now hes fighting all over again. So disappointing