2025 McLaren F1 Team

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Darth-Piekus
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Re: 2025 McLaren F1 Team

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Oscar Piastri is evolving to a race start beast.

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mwillems
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Re: 2025 McLaren F1 Team

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It would have been a similar loss but with the risk that any Piastri pit mishap would impact Lando, so may aswell send him round and have 1 lap fresher tyres.
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Darth-Piekus
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Re: 2025 McLaren F1 Team

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Overall if was an enjoyable sprint. Another fantastic start from both drivers this year as they seem to be nailing starts so far. Oscar got another driver's scalp at the start and Lando was there to gain from Antonelli's mistake not to mention he's starting to bounce back and showing to everyone that he hasn't forgotten how to drive suddenly.

FittingMechanics
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Re: 2025 McLaren F1 Team

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mwillems wrote:
03 May 2025, 20:29
It would have been a similar loss but with the risk that any Piastri pit mishap would impact Lando, so may aswell send him round and have 1 lap fresher tyres.
Yeah, not really anything wrong with what they did. It's a hard call to make for the leaders, there is high risk of safety cars and I was half expecting them to split the strategies but the gap was quite big and they had a "no risk" decision.

AR3-GP
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Re: 2025 McLaren F1 Team

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Piastri used the rubber too much. Same as the last 3 race weekends. He had clean air the whole time, no excuses. Norris had dirty air. Piastri is benefitting a lot from the tire savantry that Mclaren have achieved with the MCL-39. In a different car, he would be exposed more.

There’s still many limitations for both drivers. Piastri just managed them better to this point, but if Norris can qualify next to Pia again, he’ll win the GP. He was not able to do this in China, SA, or Bahrain but every new day is another opportunity.
It doesn't turn.

Emag
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Re: 2025 McLaren F1 Team

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Probably a bit too late to say this, but I don’t like what Oscar did to Kimi lap 1 at all. It’s not a way of racing I personally enjoy seeing even if it’s technically legal.

Those sort of moves are the sole criticsm I have had for Max. Hope Oscar doesn’t turn it into a norm.
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billamend
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Re: 2025 McLaren F1 Team

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Emag wrote:
03 May 2025, 21:47
Probably a bit too late to say this, but I don’t like what Oscar did to Kimi lap 1 at all. It’s not a way of racing I personally enjoy seeing even if it’s technically legal.

Those sort of moves are the sole criticsm I have had for Max. Hope Oscar doesn’t turn it into a norm.

I agree, but it’s Piastri MO… it’s not the first time he does these kinds of moves.

AR3-GP
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Re: 2025 McLaren F1 Team

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Emag wrote:
03 May 2025, 21:47
Probably a bit too late to say this, but I don’t like what Oscar did to Kimi lap 1 at all. It’s not a way of racing I personally enjoy seeing even if it’s technically legal.

Those sort of moves are the sole criticsm I have had for Max. Hope Oscar doesn’t turn it into a norm.
Rob Marshall and his flexi-men can play in gray areas, but Oscar isn't allowed? :lol:
It doesn't turn.

Ben1980
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Re: 2025 McLaren F1 Team

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Emag wrote:
03 May 2025, 21:47
Probably a bit too late to say this, but I don’t like what Oscar did to Kimi lap 1 at all. It’s not a way of racing I personally enjoy seeing even if it’s technically legal.

Those sort of moves are the sole criticsm I have had for Max. Hope Oscar doesn’t turn it into a norm.
If that was Max on Oscar or Lando, people would be critical of him.

If we accept it by Oscar, will need to accept it all round.

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SilviuAgo
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Re: 2025 McLaren F1 Team

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Interesting Sprint Race with another 1-2 for McLaren. Big Points are coming tomorrow but till the Race Quali we can enjoy the result.

With his starts seems Oscar is making friends among F1 top drivers :D . After Max complaining in Saudi, now Kimi complaining in Miami.
  • Kimi Antonelli: "[...] it was a great opportunity, I am a bit annoyed about lap one, with how it went. It seems like it is like this, and you can do basically whatever you want, so it's good to know for the future."
  • Toto Wolff: "I don't think we are setting good precedents - just release the brake and push the other guy off. You know, also for the junior formulas. I think you need to leave a cars space, and this has kind of creaped in turn one, pushed out."
The other part of the coin is that next time this drivers will not be so nice to Oscar. We'll see.

The pace was good and happy the drivers kept it clean. I don't want to know what all the haters would have said if Lando was in Charles place today.
But Lando did well today and his pace was after mid race better than Oscar's. And his "bad luck" to be P2 and McLaren to prioritize Oscar for pit stop came into his favor with the Safety Car.

Some interesting footage of the pitstops, when Lando closed the gap from over 1.8 seconds down to .493 before Oscar jumped the chicane and gained more than a half second advantage in doing so.


And race pace courtesy FormulaDataAnalysis
Image

napoleon1981
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Re: 2025 McLaren F1 Team

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Emag wrote:
03 May 2025, 21:47
Probably a bit too late to say this, but I don’t like what Oscar did to Kimi lap 1 at all. It’s not a way of racing I personally enjoy seeing even if it’s technically legal.

Those sort of moves are the sole criticsm I have had for Max. Hope Oscar doesn’t turn it into a norm.
He is pretty crafty, the same when Lando applied the pressure and he made a mistake going into chicane, conveniently going straight so he wouldn't lose the position.

Slahinki
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Re: 2025 McLaren F1 Team

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Ben1980 wrote:
03 May 2025, 21:53
Emag wrote:
03 May 2025, 21:47
Probably a bit too late to say this, but I don’t like what Oscar did to Kimi lap 1 at all. It’s not a way of racing I personally enjoy seeing even if it’s technically legal.

Those sort of moves are the sole criticsm I have had for Max. Hope Oscar doesn’t turn it into a norm.
If that was Max on Oscar or Lando, people would be critical of him.

If we accept it by Oscar, will need to accept it all round.
I don't think critical describes in harsh enough terms the reaction if it had been Max that pulled off that move.

geogate
geogate
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Re: 2025 McLaren F1 Team

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didnt see anything wrong with Piastri myself. He easily made the corner - Max's MO was to let off the brakes and not worry about making the corner. I think Antonelli bailed the corner in a way he didnt need to. He sure wasnt "pushed" off as he claimed

Ground Effect
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Re: 2025 McLaren F1 Team

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Emag wrote:
03 May 2025, 21:47
Probably a bit too late to say this, but I don’t like what Oscar did to Kimi lap 1 at all. It’s not a way of racing I personally enjoy seeing even if it’s technically legal.

Those sort of moves are the sole criticsm I have had for Max. Hope Oscar doesn’t turn it into a norm.
I can't see anything Oscar did wrong there. He was ahead and held the same line, while Kimi seemed to be trying to make sure Lando didn't sneak up from behind.
Q: (Stefano Mancini – La Stampa) Kimi, will you help Vettel to win his championship this year?
Kimi Raikkonen: I can only drive one car, obviously. 
@2018 Singapore Grand Prix drivers press conference.

Mcl_G10
Mcl_G10
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Re: 2025 McLaren F1 Team

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AR3-GP wrote:
03 May 2025, 21:30
Piastri used the rubber too much. Same as the last 3 race weekends. He had clean air the whole time, no excuses. Norris had dirty air. Piastri is benefitting a lot from the tire savantry that Mclaren have achieved with the MCL-39. In a different car, he would be exposed more.

There’s still many limitations for both drivers. Piastri just managed them better to this point, but if Norris can qualify next to Pia again, he’ll win the GP. He was not able to do this in China, SA, or Bahrain but every new day is another opportunity.

This is very true. Both drivers are perhaps lacking a little on the overall package in different areas on what is required to carry this mclaren to a championship win a little more comfortably.

I could see earlier that oscar had been using more tyre life too soon. Lando is an expert at managing the tyres for the best possible time over a stint. From landos perspective he just needs to keep right on Oscars shoulder in qualys if not ahead and he will more often than not finish ahead over a race distance unless it's a low deg track.

From lando side he still lacks psychologically. That cold killer instinct and pulling it put the bag in the high pressure moments (tight q3's)

Hoping for a front row lockout to come but I don't think the temps are going to high enough for mclaren to benefit over the others. So we could well be anywhere from p1-p5.