Oscar Piastri has conceded to feeling annoyed after failing to meet the rising expectations of both himself and McLaren with his qualifying performance for the Dutch Grand Prix.
In the wet and mixed conditions across the first two sessions, Piastri was second quickest behind Red Bull’s Max Verstappen, and was lying third with four minutes remaining in Q3 when the red flags were brought out for Charles Leclerc’s crash in his Ferrari.
But with the sun out and on a dry track when the session resumed, a poor final run cost Piastri dearly as he will line up eighth in his McLaren.
The sense of disappointment was exacerbated by the fact it will be team-mate Lando Norris starting alongside Verstappen on the front row as the MCL60 again emerged as the second quickest car behind the all-conquering RB19.
Piastri recognises that “expectations have changed massively” following the emergence of the team from its early-season woes thanks to the raft of upgrades that made their way onto the car from the Austrian GP onwards.
“When I qualified in this position in Saudi I was feeling pretty happy with myself,” said Piastri reflecting on the second race of the season when the car was at its worst.
“Now I’ve qualified eighth again and I’m pretty pissed off. So it’s funny how quickly it changes. The expectations are high for us now.
“Max and Red Bull are still a step ahead of everybody but we’re proving each weekend now that we can be that next team waiting.
“Of course, it’s tough to get it right, and unfortunately my result has shown that if you get it wrong, you don’t just lose a position or two, it’s like six or seven.
“So we still have to be on top of our game every time we go out there, but we can definitely set our sights high and continue to push forward for the rest of the year.”
Piastri suggested that his lack of running in second practice when the track was dry proved crucial.
The 22-year-old Australian missed out on much-needed data after losing the rear of his car on the approach to the banked Turn 3, crashing into a barrier from which he failed to recover.
“I paid the price a little bit for not getting the laps in,” assessed Piastri.
“I was kind of hoping it would stay a little bit more wet (in Q3) because in those conditions it’s the same for everybody, and new conditions for everybody.
“Not getting those laps in, through my own fault, unfortunately, made a bit of a difference, so that was the main thing, and it’s a shame we are not higher up on the grid.”
The Melburnian concedes he will now need “a lot of luck” to make progress given the short, narrow nature of the seaside circuit around which it is difficult to overtake.
“Clearly the car is quick, and it’s a shame I wasn’t able to get the most out of it,” he said.
“But it’s still very encouraging for the team that we can come to another quite different circuit with a mix of high-speed and low-speed, a bumpy circuit, and we’re still strong.
“That’s very encouraging for the team, very encouraging for me. For me, it’s just going to be about trying to make up a few spots if we can, but around here, it’s so difficult to overtake.
“If we move forward, that’ll be a good result.”
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