Oscar Piastri took his sixth pole position of the 2025 F1 season at the Qatar GP, as he pipped McLaren team-mate and title rival Lando Norris by just over a tenth of a second to continue what has been a superb weekend so far for the Australian, after winning the Sprint from pole.
Why the start is “the biggest thing” heading into Sunday’s grand prix
Although he was satisfied with securing pole position at a crunch time in the F1 world championship fight, Piastri’s focus is already set on getting a good launch of the line for the Qatar GP, as he has McLaren team-mate Lando Norris and Red Bull’s Max Verstappen in close company for what could be a critical first turn in the destiny of the title fight:
“It obviously helps [starting from pole],” he said. “I mean, the next target is to try and get a good start, and then that should make life a bit easier if I can do a good job [from] there.
“So far, so good. But it’s obviously a long way to go. A couple of pit stops for tomorrow as well. So there’s still a lot that can happen but everything’s gone well so far.
“I think the start is probably the biggest thing I need to get right tomorrow,” Piastri emphasized. “I think we saw [in the Sprint] clean air is a massive advantage around here.
“And with the [mandatory maximum] stint lengths, I think it’s going to be a pretty fast-paced race. So [the start] is probably the biggest thing to get right, but [there’s] still a lot that can happen.”
Qatar GP will have “same importance” as other races for him
After reducing Norris’ advantage in the F1 championship to just 22 points following victory in the Sprint, Piastri believes that although the Qatar GP will be important with the championship in mind, it will have the “same importance” as other races for him:
“I mean, yes, it’s obviously important,” he said. “But whether it’s more important or not, not really. There’s still 25 points on offer tomorrow.
“Obviously, there’s a championship picture, but it’s got the same importance as every other race.”
Driving an F1 car around Qatar GP circuit “the coolest thing ever”
Usually ice-cool in his media appearances, Piastri couldn’t hide his satisfaction with getting back on top form just as he needed, as well as his general enjoyment of driving an F1 car around the high-grip, fast sweepers of the Lusail circuit in qualifying trim – which he described as “the coolest thing ever“:
“I mean, I said on the in lap I think – driving an F1 car around this track, in those conditions, is probably the coolest thing ever,” he added. “You know, having those three right hand corners not be corners, according to your right foot, is pretty remarkable.
“And obviously the grip level is incredibly high, and much higher than [Sprint Qualifying] too. So yeah, it’s a lot of fun.
“Everything’s just felt good this week and the car’s been in a nice window. I feel like I’ve been able to get comfortable with it pretty quickly and the results have followed.”
Poor recent run of races provided “opportunities” to become a better driver
Piastri’s perfect Qatar GP weekend so far comes off the back of a difficult run of the races for the man who led the F1 championship for a large portion of the season.
He endured difficult races recently, especially in the low-grip conditions of Austin and Mexico City, along with an incident-packed São Paulo GP weekend and a disqualification from the Las Vegas GP.
Reflecting on that run, the Australian believes it provided him with “opportunities” to become a more complete driver and rediscover the form that did him well for “90% of the season”:
“I think there’s just been some races, obviously more recently, where things just haven’t clicked,” he admitted. “And I think Austin and Mexico in particular, there was still some opportunities to become a better driver all round in terms of my driving style and how I adapt to different conditions and different needs from the car.
“So I think that’s really it, to be honest. For probably 90% of the season, what I’ve done has worked very well.
“And I think this weekend’s been one of those. But I think there’s just been certain moments through the year where I’ve realized that there’s still things to improve on, and still ways I can get better.”
Piastri heads into the Qatar GP trailing his McLaren F1 team-mate and title rival by 22 points, with Max Verstappen a further three points back in third.
