Piastri's value declines as Norris gains an advantage at McLaren.

      "We’re consistently losing a tenth or two of a second."

      Oscar Piastri confesses that he does not understand why his performance alongside McLaren teammate Lando Norris has become increasingly challenging. While Norris was able to compete against the dominant Mercedes cars in Barcelona, Piastri had another inconspicuous weekend and was puzzled by the significant performance disparity between the two drivers in the garage. "Do I understand why I'm behind Lando? No, not really," the Australian acknowledged. "I experimented with various setups and faced several issues."

      Piastri recognized that Norris was able to get much more out of the McLaren car during the Spanish GP weekend. "Lando was capable of giving Mercedes a tough time during the race," he stated. The Australian believes that McLaren is being pushed beyond its comfort zone in the quest for improved performance. "We’re consistently losing a tenth or two of a second.

      "In my case, it's even more. When you're trying to uncover the last bits of speed, the car begins to feel somewhat unstable. We have to push it into a range it doesn’t really prefer to operate in. And this inevitably leads to more challenges."

      These struggles have not gone unnoticed. 2016 world champion Nico Rosberg feels that Piastri’s standing in the paddock is starting to decline, having been viewed as a title contender just a year ago. "He's not been doing too well lately," Rosberg told Sky. "His market value has dropped somewhat in recent weeks and months. With these new regulations and new cars, Oscar isn't feeling very comfortable yet. But it's a bit peculiar, and he really needs to address this now because he's slipping."

      Another former champion, Jacques Villeneuve, sees the current situation as a continuation of a downward trend that began during the latter half of last season. "Halfway through the season, he was the talk of the paddock," Villeneuve remarked. "It was great that they signed him because he proved himself in Formula 3 and Formula 2—amazing. Then he faltered, his performance dipped, and he hasn’t bounced back. It’s really strange.

      "And now nobody’s discussing him anymore," the 1997 title winner added. "And that's happened in what? Six months? Maybe even less." Villeneuve pointed out that Formula 1 quickly forgets past successes. "You’re only as good as your last race," the Canadian emphasized. "That’s the tough aspect of sports—unless you’re Lewis and you’ve won multiple championships. Then, okay, you have something to rely on. But otherwise, two or three poor races, and it’s time to move on."