Gasly and Verstappen are confused by Piastri's decline.

      "I cannot explain that."

      Two Formula 1 drivers have remarked that Oscar Piastri’s abrupt drop in performance is "odd" - even as the Australian feels he is now recovering from the downturn that hindered his championship campaign. Pierre Gasly expressed to AFP that he finds the situation difficult to comprehend. "It’s inexplicable," stated the Alpine driver. "One might feel dissatisfied with their team, but you don't forget how to drive overnight. He was less than a tenth behind his teammate all season, and now suddenly he’s six tenths behind. I find that peculiar." Title contender Max Verstappen concurred. "Honestly, I have no explanation for that. It strikes me as very strange," he noted. "I didn’t anticipate it turning out this way, but it’s not really my concern." Verstappen acknowledged he was taken aback by how composed Piastri remained. "I probably would have reacted more emotionally," he added. "It’s tough to be so far ahead and then suddenly so much further behind. I don’t operate like that; everyone has their method, but I am a bit different." Piastri himself believes the worst is now behind him. "The races in Austin and Mexico were somewhat different - something fundamental just wasn’t right," he explained. "In the other races, it was a mix of factors. I'm maintaining the same strategy - aim for the maximum every race. Winning the title is going to be quite challenging now, but my mindset remains unchanged." Red Bull’s Dr. Helmut Marko also addressed Piastri’s situation in Osterreich newspaper, dismissing conspiracy theories suggesting McLaren is favouring Lando Norris. "That’s merely a rumor. It can never be substantiated," he said. "Piastri suddenly begins to make mistakes and Norris does not - that’s all." He refuted claims that Piastri received an upgraded chassis after Baku. "That’s incorrect. Piastri just requires more time to acclimate during the race." In the meantime, Verstappen stated he will not be devastated if he fails to secure the title. "At some point, you must come back to reality," he said, referencing his recent resurgence, which began to falter in Brazil. "We’ve been on the podium in the last two races - much more consistent compared to mid-2024 to mid-2025. It’s still a positive." Despite halting development for 2025 some time ago, McLaren arrived in Las Vegas with new winglets aimed at addressing last year’s poor performance, and Lando Norris topped the charts in FP2.