Oscar Piastri admitted that his double lock-up under braking during the Azerbaijan Grand Prix “certainly took me by surprise,” after a race in which neither he nor his teammate Lando Norris scored points, according to official Formula 1 sources.
The McLaren driver had a strong start, moving into second place at the first corner by overtaking Charles Leclerc and holding off the Red Bulls of Max Verstappen and Isack Hadjar. He remained in second after the first Safety Car pit stop but lost ground on the restart, slipping to third behind Verstappen.
Following a second Safety Car caused by a collision involving Norris, Piastri again faced pressure on the restart, this time from Hadjar. While defending his position at turn 1, he suffered a double lock-up that sent him into the runoff area, dropping him down to 14th place by the finish.
“I’m disappointed. The first half of the race was encouraging, but then everything fell apart,” Piastri said. “I need to understand what happened with that lock-up because it really surprised me. It’s very disappointing to end up with no result.”
Despite the setback, Piastri noted positives from his weekend, including improved qualifying and a clearer feel for the car’s setup.
