Has Oscar Piastri been misread? ‘Not bulletproof’ claim made

Martin Brundle has suggested that Oscar Piastri has been “misread” amid his recent F1 form struggles.

Piastri’s 15-race spell leading the F1 world champion was ended by McLaren teammate Lando Norris at the last race in Mexico City, with the Briton reclaiming top spot in the drivers’ standing with a dominant victory.

The Australian had appeared in control of the title race for much of the season but has seen a 34-point advantage over Norris turn into a one-point deficit since his last win at the Dutch Grand Prix at the end of August.

A poor run of form, coupled with an uncharacteristically sloppy weekend in Azerbaijan, has seen Piastri lose momentum and confidence at a vital stage of the season.

"I think Oscar has been through a rough spell generally. It can happen to any sportsperson. Lando has upped his game, found a bit of an overdrive,” Brundle told Sky Sports F1.

"I think we may have all slightly misread Oscar in that I don't think he's as bulletproof with everything that's going on around him. We thought he was horizontal, Kimi Raikkonen-like, where everything bounced off him.

"I think he absorbs more than we realise. A number of things have happened, with the incident in Singapore for example. I think he’s absorbed that and just been through a rough patch.

"Hopefully for him he can sort that out this weekend."

Is it mindset or car-related?

Brundle thinks the issues Piastri has encountered have ultimately stemmed from his head.

"You can't relearn how to drive, and he hasn't forgotten how to be a magnificent F1 driver in six to eight weeks,” Brundle explained.

"So often, you are giving pressure or taking pressure. There's never anything in between and suddenly he's taking pressure.

"I think it's in the head rather than the car.”

Fellow Sky Sports F1 pundit Jamie Chadwick added: "It's a bit cryptic the way Oscar is talking about set-up changes, things that are not suiting him as well.

"He's having to learn but you don't have time to adapt and learn with these last few races coming so quickly.

"Whatever they have done in that McLaren garage has worked massively for Lando and not worked so well for Oscar. He's got to play catch up and turn it around to favour him more."