Oscar Piastri: Missing out on the victory was very frustrating.

      Commenting on the weekend in Qatar, Oscar Piastri lamented a lost victory…

      Question: On the lap returning to the pits you said on the radio: “I’m in shock, I have no words.” How upset are you about second place?

      Oscar Piastri: Very upset. Obviously this time things didn’t go our way, which is a real shame because the weekend up to that point had been just great. I was quick, running a great pace. Losing a win is very frustrating.

      Question: What’s worse — the disqualification last weekend or losing the win in Qatar?

      Oscar Piastri: In Vegas, where we were disqualified, I finished fourth, and in Qatar I should have won. Obviously the Vegas round was more painful for the team, personally for me — Qatar was worse.

      Question: How was the decision made to stay out on track when the safety car came out? How surprised were you when you realized everyone else had gone to the pit stop?

      Oscar Piastri: I asked, “What are we doing?” — at that moment we were already alongside the pit entry, but I didn’t get an answer. If you’re not called in immediately after the safety car comes out, there’s obviously a discussion about what to do. And in that situation you have to trust the team — they have much more information than the driver in the car about who’s where, what the gaps are, etc. In that situation I have to trust the team’s decision.

      Question: But there were positives. You took pole, won the sprint, were quick all weekend. Does that comfort you?

      Oscar Piastri: I think that will comfort me somewhat over the next few days. This weekend is one of the best for me this season. There’s one or two other weekends where, in my view, I performed at roughly the same level. So from that perspective I’m very pleased to be back to my previous speed. But unfortunately it’s another weekend where something went wrong for us.

      Question: At what point did you realize the win was slipping away?

      Oscar Piastri: When I was told that everyone except me, Lando and Ocon had come into the pits, and then Ocon also changed his tyres on the next lap. It became clear we had a problem. I think there are some things we need to review. I don’t have the answers yet.

      Question: After the race you looked irritated and tired. Obviously you need to trust the team now — the title is at stake. But how are you going to rebuild trust between you and the team?

      Oscar Piastri: I don’t think… It’s obviously not a catastrophe. We just made the wrong decision. It’s not the end of the world. It’s hard for me to accept right now, but it will settle with time. There have been plenty of difficult moments — this year, in previous seasons — but those moments make you stronger. It’s about how you deal with them. I’m sure we’ll get through it. But yes, of course, it hurts right now.

      Question: Zak and Andrea have been saying all year that the priority is fair treatment of you and Lando, even if that means sacrificing the title. Now that you’re in this situation, how do you feel about that? After this experience would you agree to the same approach next year?

      Oscar Piastri: I don’t think there were too many contentious situations. Sure, there was the incident in Monza, but that’s the only one that many people argued about. But in the recent races there were no problems with the team’s approach. The problems were on my side — with the car, with me. Obviously Lando was very quick. This weekend we only made a mistake because we believed the decision was the right one, not because we were worrying about what’s fair and what’s not. I don’t think we need to change an approach that delivers a lot of positive results. Difficult moments will always happen. I don’t think we need to change anything.