Oscar Piastri had a disappointing race during the 2024 Japanese GP at the Suzuka International Circuit. The #81 racing driver scored four points for McLaren as he took the chequered flag in eighth place, a whopping 47.525 seconds behind the eventual winner, Max Verstappen. Reflecting on his Grand Prix, Piastri conceded that his team are still quite a way behind the Ferraris.
Formu1a Uno quoted the 23-year-old as saying, “I think today showed that we still have work to do. We have not yet reached Ferrari’s level. It wasn’t the best weekend for me either, so I have to look from my point of view too.”
After the first four races of the season, McLaren have been comprehensively outdone by Ferrari. The Woking-based team sit 51 points adrift of Ferrari after the Japanese GP in the Constructors’ Championship standings.
Coming into the Japanese GP weekend, McLaren were expected to have one of the stronger packages around the 3.6-mile-long Suzuka International Circuit. Last year, the team strung along a splendid result as both Lando Norris and Piastri secured the team a double podium finish.
Naturally, the Woking-based team failed to live up to expectations as even Norris finished outside the podium places in fifth this time around. That being said, McLaren are keen to be in the mix with the Ferraris and Red Bulls soon.
Is McLaren happy with the progress they’ve made in 2024?
After the race, GrandPrix.com quoted Lando Norris as rueing the MCL38’s race pace during the 53-lap Grand Prix. The #4 driver said, “We gave it a good try, but we just didn’t have enough pace today, so trying to cover and stay ahead of the Ferraris was challenging.”
Team Principal Andrea Stella was happy that his team are pushing for podium finishes. However, he too conceded that the Japanese GP might have been an exception to the form that they’ve been showing lately. McLaren isn’t going to be resting on their laurels, however.
With the 2024 F1 season now properly up and running, teams are looking to bring in upgrade packages for the upcoming races. McLaren are no different with the early estimations hinting at an upgrade or two coming around the Miami or Emilia Romagna GP for the team.
If their 2023 pace was anything to go by, the team would’ve expected to be in the mix fighting Red Bull by this time in the season. However, as the Japanese GP has suggested, the iconic British team still has a long way to go before they catch up to the ever-dominant Red Bulls.
