Piastri admits McLaren lacking pace at Monza

Oscar Piastri has conceded McLaren lacks the pace needed at Monza after Friday practice. He ended FP2 sixth with a 1m23.028s best lap, 0.469s behind George Russell and less than a tenth off teammate Lando Norris.

Why it matters:

With Mercedes setting the early benchmark and the field tightly packed, McLaren risks losing ground at a track where top speed and efficiency are decisive. Piastri's admission shows the updates are not yet delivering single-lap pace.

The details:

• Piastri was 11th in FP1, more than a second behind Charles Leclerc, before improving to sixth in FP2.
• McLaren continued evaluating its rotating H-Wing configuration, which debuted in practice at the Hungarian Grand Prix. Norris ran it in FP1 before both cars used it in FP2.
• Technical director Neil Houldey said the concept performed as expected, but the car is around three-tenths off where the team wants to be.
• Norris added the pace is not where it needs to be, saying: "It's very tight at the front and the group behind isn't far off either."

What's next:

Final practice begins at 12:30pm local time Saturday, ahead of qualifying later in the day. McLaren hopes overnight analysis of the H-Wing and energy management will unlock the missing pace, but both drivers expect a tough fight.