Piastri rejects claims of McLaren bias, says he got 'fair shot'

Oscar Piastri has firmly dismissed the persistent narrative from his home country that McLaren favored teammate Lando Norris over him during the 2024 title fight. The Australian driver stated he received a fair opportunity and never questioned the team's intentions, though he acknowledged some situations could have been handled better.

Why it matters:

The debate over team favoritism, which even reached the Australian Parliament, touches on the core tension in F1 between its team sport dynamics and the individual drivers' championship. Piastri's public rebuttal aims to quell a distracting narrative and reinforce team unity as McLaren prepares for another championship campaign, ensuring internal harmony remains intact.

The details:

• Piastri directly addressed the speculation in a media session, stating, "I got a fair shot last year and I'm expecting that to stay exactly the same."
• He clarified that while not every decision was perfect, there was no malicious intent from the team. "At no point were there any bad intentions or any times I questioned the intentions of things," he explained.
• The driver acknowledged room for improvement, adding, "That's definitely not to say that certain things could have been done better last year."
• The theory of preferential treatment gained significant traction in Australia, with local TV channels frequently critiquing McLaren's strategy after Norris secured the 2024 drivers' title over Piastri.
• The topic became so prominent that it was formally discussed within the Australian Parliament, highlighting the intense national interest in Piastri's career and treatment.

What's next:

Piastri's comments serve to draw a line under the speculation and focus on the future. He emphasized that the team is now working on improving processes to become stronger collectively. Moving forward, the scrutiny on McLaren's internal parity between its two star drivers will remain high, but Piastri's clear stance provides a foundation of stated equality for the team to build upon in the upcoming season.