Oscar Piastri fears Ferrari after Friday at Hungaroring: the McLaren driver sees the Scuderia among the favorites but urges caution ahead of qualifying
Friday at the Hungarian Grand Prix confirmed one thing: Ferrari appears to be one of the most competitive cars on the grid. This was evident from the times set in both free practice sessions, and also from Oscar Piastri’s assessment, who named the Scuderia among the main contenders for pole position.
and on Google News to improve the quality of the articles
The McLaren driver experienced a challenging day. After skipping the first session to give rookie Leonardo Fornaroli track time, the Australian returned in FP2 but had to make up for lost running. McLaren’s technical upgrades were introduced only on Lando Norris’ car.
Speaking after the sessions, Piastri explained: “It was definitely a tough day. The track conditions were difficult, with a lot of wind and the new asphalt providing very little grip. Missing a practice session made things even harder.”
Piastri: “Ferrari was very fast“
The Australian clarified that he did not run with the new upgrades. “I didn’t have the upgrades today. They ran on Lando’s car as we expected, which is good news. They didn’t completely transform the car, which we didn’t really expect, although it would have been nice. I will test them tomorrow and hope for a positive day.”
Looking at the on-track performance, Piastri identified Ferrari as the most impressive team. “Ferrari looked very quick in both sessions. Lando was also competitive, especially in the second. Mercedes is very hard to read right now, so I’ll wait until tomorrow.”
The McLaren driver stopped short of predicting the pole battle, suggesting qualifying could be very close. “If we manage a good day, I think there will be a lot at stake. The gaps are very small and anything can happen in qualifying.”
A close fight anticipated for the pole position
Therefore, Piastri sees Ferrari as the benchmark from Friday’s running. At the same time, he advises caution. According to the McLaren driver, if every top team nails a perfect lap and finds ideal conditions, the pole fight could involve all eight drivers. It remains a delicate balance, with qualifying potentially hinging more on fine details than outright car potential.