Piastri: ‘Just not quite enough speed’ to beat Mercedes drivers

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Oscar Piastri was hoping to catch and overhaul Mercedes’ leading duo in the final stages of Sunday’s Belgian Grand Prix, but the McLaren driver admitted he lacked just a bit of speed to get the job done.

Piastri crossed the checkered flag third, just 0.647s behind George Russell, but was ultimately classified second behind eventual race winner Lewis Hamilton, following Russell's unfortunate disqualification due to his Mercedes car being 1.5kg underweight.

After qualifying fifth on Saturday, the Aussie showcased strong pace throughout the race, with key overtaking maneuvers on Sergio Perez and Charles Leclerc proving crucial in his charge towards hunting down and reeling in Mercedes’ duo.

Despite falling short of overhauling the pair, Piastri reckoned he had the pace to challenge for an outright win.

“Honestly yes, I thought I could. Clean air was such a big difference today – once I got a little bit of clean air in the middle stint I picked up a lot of pace and managed to get a nice tyre delta for the last stop."

“But clearly didn’t need tyre delta, you just needed to keep going as George showed!”

Read also: Norris looking forward to summer 'reset' after tough Spa race

Reflecting on his overall performance, Piastri expressed satisfaction with the race management, but acknowledged a minor error.

“But no, happy with the result. I think we managed the race very well. I think that’s the second or third time this year we’ve tried to run over the front jack, so I’ll try not to do that next time… But very happy with the result and I don’t think we could have done too much more.”

When asked about what was missing that prevented him from reaching the head of the race, Piastri explained: "I think just not quite enough speed.

“It took me a couple of laps to get past Charles and I really overheated the tyres doing that."

Following his debut Formula 1 win in Hungary just a week ago and his runner-up spot on Sunday in Belgium, Piastri is in high spirits as he heads into the sport’s summer break.

“It’s been a really good couple of weeks for myself and the whole team of course – a lot of points,” the 23-year-old said. “We still made inroads on Red Bull today and that’s a really positive thing going into the break.

“I think everyone’s looking forward to a bit of a break – I know I am so I can heal up a little bit – but it’s been a fun couple of weeks and [I’m] looking forward to some time relaxing and coming back stronger in the second half.”

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Phillip van Osten

Motor racing was a backdrop from the outset in Phillip van Osten's life. Born in Southern California, Phillip grew up with the sights and sounds of fast cars thanks to his father, Dick van Osten, an editor and writer for Auto Speed and Sport and Motor Trend. Phillip's passion for racing grew even more when his family moved to Europe and he became acquainted with the extraordinary world of Grand Prix racing. He was an early contributor to the monthly French F1i Magazine, often providing a historic or business perspective on Formula 1's affairs. In 2012, he co-authored along with fellow journalist Pierre Van Vliet the English-language adaptation of a limited edition book devoted to the great Belgian driver Jacky Ickx. He also authored "The American Legacy in Formula 1", a book which recounts the trials and tribulations of American drivers in Grand Prix racing. Phillip is also a commentator for Belgian broadcaster Be.TV for the US Indycar series.