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Martin Brundle points to key moment in McLaren’s season as he assesses Oscar Piastri’s title collapse.
Martin Brundle has raised doubts about whether McLaren’s contentious driver swap during the Monza race affected Oscar Piastri’s chances of winning the F1 title. At the Italian Grand Prix, McLaren instructed Piastri, who was leading the championship at the time, to let teammate Lando Norris regain second place after a slow pit stop. Despite McLaren’s strategy of pitting Piastri first to secure a 2-3 finish behind Max Verstappen, the plan went awry when Norris faced issues during his pit stop. Subsequently, Piastri struggled in the following races and missed out on his first world championship to Norris. Brundle pointed out that the incident in Monza might have impacted Piastri’s performance in the later races, including a challenging weekend in Azerbaijan and a lack of podium finishes. The former driver also highlighted Piastri’s strong races earlier in the season, emphasizing his skill in overtaking and victories in various Grand Prix events.
