F1 News: Oscar Piastri Disappointed After Japanese GP Podium - "Got The Real Stuff"

As per Damon Hill, he expected a better position.

Former Formula One champion Damon Hill revealed that Oscar Piastri was disappointed in securing a third-place finish at the Japanese Grand Prix in Suzuka, despite it being the first podium of his career in F1. 

Courtesy of the improved McLaren MCL60, Piastri was able to race ahead of the pack in Japan, being the only contender alongside teammate Lando Norris to have gone nearer to Max Verstappen's untouchable RB19. 

Suzuka would mostly go down as one of the most memorable races for Piastri, given his impressive second-place start on the grid and his P3 finish. However, Hill believes that the 22-year-old driver would be disappointed for not finishing ahead of Norris in P2. Talking on the F1 Nation podcast where he praised Piastri's excellent Suzuka run, Hill revealed:

"He's only been on the simulator, but he was putting his outside wheel on the edge of the track to perfection using every inch, right early on, on Friday. And I was super impressed with that. 

And I think that it shows he's got the real stuff, the right stuff and the natural talent that you need to succeed in Formula 1 and he's determined.

He was also disappointed with his third place. Even though it was his first ever Formula 1 podium because he felt, I think I'm sure he felt, he wanted to consolidate his qualifying performance with a second [place finish]."

The Australian driver revealed he had plenty of room for development after lacking pace compared to Norris. Describing what made Lando overtake him despite starting second on the grid, he told Sky Sports F1: 

“I got a really good launch and then, in all honesty, I got a bit excited with the throttle pedal and the second phase I just had far too much wheel spin and that’s where I kind of lost that ground to Max again and Lando clearly had the best start of the three of us by a fair bit.

Tried my best and then it was pretty tight anyway, I wasn’t far enough alongside and realistically even if I got in front of Max it wouldn’t have been for long. I’m just happy I managed to settle into third and in the end that was all the pace we had for the day.”

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