Oscar Piastri finished sixth at the Dutch Grand Prix, a result he described as frustrating following a notable performance drop-off in the second half of the race. The McLaren driver had initially demonstrated strong pace at Circuit Zandvoort, positioning himself for a potential podium finish before his performance declined.
Piastri made an encouraging start to the Grand Prix, gaining positions on the opening lap. He executed an impressive overtake on George Russell to move into third place, putting him in contention at the front of the field.
However, Piastri’s race began to unravel during the pit-stop phase. A slow stop caused him to drop behind Russell, and from the second stint onwards, the Australian struggled to maintain his earlier pace.
His issues were compounded by grip problems, leaving him vulnerable to rivals. Both Charles Leclerc and Lewis Hamilton eventually passed Piastri, pushing him further down the order.
Piastri expressed his bewilderment regarding the sudden loss of pace. He stated that after the first stint, the car’s speed was simply not present, making the remainder of the race a struggle.
‘A frustrating afternoon with a disappointing result but still some points on the board. The main positive we can take away is the start and the first lap after the Red Flag, where the car felt good and we were able to make up positions. The first stint felt reasonable, but from the second stint onwards, the pace was simply not there, and it became a real struggle.’
The slow pit stop was acknowledged as a factor, but Piastri indicated it was not the fundamental issue. He highlighted the overall lack of pace as the primary concern, which the team intends to investigate.
McLaren Team Principal Andrea Stella admitted that tyre behaviour was difficult to comprehend throughout the Zandvoort weekend. He specifically cited Piastri’s second stint as an example of the dramatic performance fluctuations observed.
Stella noted that Piastri has been adapting to the characteristics of the 2026 Formula 1 cars, which tend to slide more. He believes that Piastri’s ‘right feeling’ with these cars has not yet fully developed.
McLaren Technical Director Neil Houldey previously stated that the team continues to extract performance from its MCL38 chassis. He confirmed that further upgrades were planned for the latter half of the 2026 season.
Houldey also acknowledged that the MCL38 has exhibited handling issues, a point both Piastri and Lando Norris have raised in their feedback. The team had to allocate resources to reduce the car’s weight early in the season.
For the Dutch Grand Prix, McLaren introduced additional upgrades focused on the rear of the car, including a new rear wing and revised rear brake ducts. These were intended to complete a package initiated at the Hungarian Grand Prix.
The 2026 Dutch Grand Prix itself was eventful, marked by heavy rain before the start and an early red flag due to Max Verstappen’s crash. Lando Norris secured his second consecutive victory for McLaren.
Piastri’s sixth-place finish places him seventh in the drivers’ championship with 104 points. He is 138 points behind leader Kimi Antonelli and 55 points adrift of teammate Norris.
This result extends Piastri’s current winless streak in Grand Prix events to 12 months. McLaren will now participate in a Pirelli tyre test at Mugello, with Piastri driving on Wednesday.
