McLaren have now internally changed their mind about Oscar Piastri after recent ‘downward trend’

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Oscar Piastri is trying to bounce back from his recent dip in performance and keep his title hopes alive in the final three races of the 2025 season.

After the Brazilian Grand Prix, the Australian sits 24 points behind his McLaren teammate Lando Norris. While the Brit had a dominant weekend at Interlagos, topping every session on the way to victory, Piastri had another disastrous weekend.

The 24-year-old crashed out in the Sprint race and was off the pace of his teammate in qualifying. On Sunday, Piastri was given a 10-second time penalty after lunging down the inside at turn one and colliding with Kimi Antonelli, ultimately finishing fifth.

It is the sixth consecutive race where the Aussie has failed to finish on the podium or beat his teammate, with Norris creating a clear advantage. Mistakes are becoming common for Piastri, and his team are becoming much less accepting.

McLaren now ‘no longer forgives’ Oscar Piastri for his mistakes during 2025 title fight

A lot of noise has been made about McLaren’s treatment of their drivers in 2025, particularly regarding team orders. Piastri reflected on ‘what happened with the pit stops’ at Monza – he was told to give up position to Norris after the Brit suffered a slow stop.

The Australian has not been happy with how the team have handled the title fight, despite Zak Brown and Andrea Stella’s reassurances that he and Norris are equal. But it is clear that Piastri is falling behind his teammate.

Juan Pablo Montoya says there is no ‘conspiracy’ at play at McLaren, as he blames Piastri’s ‘internal decision’ to set up his car differently than Norris. The latter’s setup is proving to be faster as the former struggles on low-grip circuits.

As per a report from Auto Motor und Sport, Piastri is ‘becoming increasingly frantic’ and is trying to ‘buck the downward trend’. However, this is leading to mistakes, which is opening the door for Norris to extend his lead in the championship.

‘McLaren no longer forgives’ these errors from Piastri, with that being the ‘difference’ from how they handled the title battle at the start of the year. They are keen to finish first and second in the standings, and any more mistakes could jeopardise that.

READ MORE: McLaren driver Oscar Piastri’s life outside F1 from height to girlfriend

McLaren’s treatment of Oscar Piastri could lead to his exit

This change in mentality towards Piastri at McLaren is not the only harsh statement or approach they have made with the Aussie. A very senior McLaren figure devalued Piastri’s victories earlier in the season because the team believed Norris was underperforming.

Furthermore, the 24-year-old has been getting the flak for recent errors. McLaren blamed Piastri for his crash with Norris at COTA, which had a damaging effect on his confidence.

This treatment, combined with the pressure of fighting for the championship, has led to speculation that Piastri could look to leave McLaren in the near future.

Guenther Steiner thinks Piastri will leave McLaren when his contract expires. If the relationship between the two parties sours, it may be plausible to say that it could end sooner.