Oscar Piastri says risk approach won’t change despite growing F1 title lead ahead of Italian GP at Monza
Oscar Piastri: No Plans to Back Off Despite 34-Point Lead Ahead of Italian Grand Prix
MONZA, Italy — Formula 1 championship leader Oscar Piastri says he has no plans to back off despite opening a 34-point lead in the F1 championship standings, insisting it’s far too early to start settling for anything less than victories at the Italian Grand Prix at Monza.
Piastri’s dominant win at the Dutch Grand Prix at Zandvoort, combined with McLaren F1 teammate and title rival Lando Norris’ late retirement, widened the gap with nine races to go in the Formula 1 season. Only two drivers under F1’s current points system — Fernando Alonso in 2012 and Charles Leclerc in 2022 — have lost a championship after holding a lead that large.
Piastri Remains Focused on Winning
When told that stat ahead of Sunday’s Italian Grand Prix at Monza and asked if his approach would change, Piastri laughed.
"Honestly, very little," he said, speaking ahead of Sunday's Italian Grand Prix. "I didn't know that stuff, but thank you. I've had one of my own championships ... I've had a much bigger gap than this and had it pretty much erased before the final round. So I've got personal experience of this not being a comfortable gap. But yeah, it's still far too early to be calculating and settling for positions that aren't first. So for me, the approach is still exactly the same. Yeah, that won't change until the gap is pretty significantly bigger, or the amount of races is significantly smaller."
Measured Risk Management in F1
The Australian emphasized that changing his mentality now would be unnatural and counter to what’s worked so far in this F1 title fight and his measured risk management in Formula 1.
"The risk attitude, five races ago, [I] didn't know the championship picture was going to look like this. And if you took a different amount of risk either way, then the gap is going to be potentially smaller than what it is, could potentially be bigger. But I like to think that my approach to risk is pretty measured. So for me, that doesn't really change regardless of the championship situation."
Expectations for McLaren Rival Lando Norris
After his Zandvoort retirement, Norris suggested he could now race with nothing to lose as he tries to reel Piastri back in. Piastri doesn’t expect any radical shift from the other side of the McLaren F1 garage during the Monza race weekend.
When asked if he should expect a more aggressive Norris from now on, Piastri said: "I don't think so. I don't think much will change. He's certainly not out of the fight. Yes, it's a bit more difficult now, but I don't expect much to change. I think we'll race each other the same way. I think the amount of risk-taking will be the same. We're both trying to drive as fast as we can. It's not like we'll be holding anything back from that side of things. So I don't think we'll be able to change."
Entering Monza in Control
With the Temple of Speed up next, Piastri enters Monza in control — and determined to keep his foot down.
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