Oscar Piastri’s six-month reign atop the Formula 1 drivers’ championship came to a frustrating halt at the Mexico Grand Prix on Sunday, after a frustrating race that saw McLaren teammate Lando Norris claim a comfortable victory.
Despite a determined effort throughout the race, the 24-year-old could only finish fifth, falling short even after a late surge to fourth that would have preserved his championship lead.
The Australian pushed hard to overtake Oli Bearman, who held firm in fourth place, but a virtual safety car in the final two laps derailed his late charge.
As a result, Piastri has ceded the top spot on the leaderboard to Norris, who now holds a slender one-point advantage with just four races remaining.
MORE: ‘Don’t crash into each other’—Piastri reveals plan ahead of crucial Mexico City Grand Prix
“The whole race I was right behind someone, and just struggling in dirty air. For me, the biggest thing is to learn the things I want to learn,” Piastri said.
“Yesterday, it became obvious there were a few things I needed to change about how I was driving. But when your team mate wins the race...
“I’ve had to drive very differently, or not driven differently when I should have. That has been strange to get my head around, as the last couple of weekends the car or the tyres have required a different way of driving.
“Plenty of analysis to try and get on top of that.”
Commentators expressed frustration and disappointment with the anticlimactic finish, as the crucial safety car effectively froze the field, preventing any late-race moves that could have changed the outcome.
"We've got a virtual safety car and that is going to signal the end of this race," David Croft said in commentary for Sky Sports F1.
"It's not gonna go down well with Oscar Piastri, who was trying to get past Oli Bearman. Bearman and Leclerc will be smiling at this virtual safety car.
"They (the fans) were standing in the grandstands waiting for an outstanding finish.
"I just don't understand from what we can see why we need a virtual safety car. It has utterly robbed us of a brilliant finish here in Mexico City."
Fellow commentator Karun Chandhok added: "I'm a little bit frustrated by this, I feel like we have been robbed of a finish here".