Piastri owns up to ‘untidy’ Monaco weekend after qualifying P3

Oscar Piastri didn’t pretend everything had gone smoothly in qualifying in Monaco, despite sealing a spot in third position on Sunday’s grid, behind only his McLaren teammate Lando Norris and home favourite Charles Leclerc.

The Australian drive was brutally honest in assessing a weekend marred by wall brushes, rhythm struggles, and a nagging sense that he never quite found his groove on the storied streets of Monte Carlo.

After Norris stormed to a record-breaking pole and Leclerc slotted into second, Piastri found some “decent” redemption in his final Q3 effort, but he wasn’t hiding the fact that it had been an uphill battle from the very first lap on Friday.

Wall-Tapping Woes and a Battle for Rhythm

Piastri’s troubles began with a thump – quite literally – when he hit the barriers head-on at Sainte Devote during practice. While the damage wasn’t terminal, the collision set the tone for a weekend in which the McLaren driver seemed perpetually on the edge.

“I think I've hit more walls this weekend than I have in my whole career, so it's been untidy,” Piastri admitted after qualifying.

The grid defining session didn’t reverse the trend. The Australian clipped the barriers several more times in Q1 and Q2, enough to prompt him to ask the McLaren pit wall to check the car repeatedly over the radio.

It was a clear sign that he wasn’t entirely comfortable – not with the car, not with the track, and perhaps not with himself.

“Yeah, just been struggling to get into the groove a bit,” he continued. “I think in qualifying I was much happier with things and I felt pretty good.

“But, yeah, we've been doing some digging this weekend, and to come out with this result is a decent effort.”

That “decent effort” ultimately put Piastri third on the grid, continuing what has been a strong season so far, though it also marked just the third time in 2025 that he hasn’t qualified on the front row.

On a circuit where track position is everything, that could prove costly.

Chasing Confidence in a High-Stakes Qualifier

While Piastri found improvement in the final phase of qualifying, the elusive perfection required for Monaco pole remained out of reach. By his own admission, beating Norris – who delivered a stunning third flyer on used tyres – was always going to be a tall order.

“I think to beat Lando today was going to be tough, so well done, well done to him,” Piastri acknowledged.

Even so, there was a sense of satisfaction in clawing back from a difficult build-up.

It's been a pretty messy weekend so far, so to come out with a lap that I thought was pretty good and third is a decent result.”

With overtaking traditionally near-impossible around Monte Carlo’s tight confines, the 24-year-old will be banking on Monaco’s new mandatory two-stop rule to shake up the order.

Strategy, timing, and pit lane execution could be his only tools to mount a charge from third, especially with two of the most consistent drivers of the season ahead of him.

It wasn’t the cleanest road to the second row, but Piastri’s persistence paid off.

Now, with a podium within reach and a title fight unfolding, the McLaren driver will hope the untidiness of Friday and Saturday gives way to something far more polished on Sunday.

Keep up to date with all the F1 news via X and Facebook