The Azerbaijan Grand Prix was one to forget for the Championship leader, Oscar Piastri. He not only crashed during Qualifying, but also during the Grand Prix on Sunday during the very first lap.
Piastri’s performance in Baku is very unusual compared to what he has showcased so far this season. After the race, McLaren’s team principal compared his incident to a 7-time Championship with Ferrari, Michael Schumacher.
Andrea Stella compares Oscar Piastri to Michael Schumacher
Piastri’s DNF in Baku marked the end of a 44 consecutive race finishes streak for the Aussie. While the incident seemed like a huge blow for the Championship leader, Andrea Stella suggests that it’s only a one-off.
“I have worked with multi-champion drivers, and in a season, every season, even the most dominant, even by one of the best drivers in the history of Formula 1, like Michael Schumacher, I have seen events like this,” Stella said.
“Events in which the most you take away [from the weekend] is the learning, because things become, for some reasons, difficult, and as soon as you misjudge the grip available, you get highly punished.”
🚨 | Andrea Stella says the issues from Oscar Piastri were uncharacteristic:
“With Oscar, we had some issues that were quite uncharacteristic. I’m sure he’ll learn from it and come back stronger—he’s a very solid driver, and I’m confident we’ll be back on form with him in…
— Fastest Pitstop (@FastestPitStop) September 21, 2025
“So, a one-off weekend in which things don’t go his way, and he ultimately had a loss to review. It is no surprise, no exception that we should not be worried about it, because this has happened to pretty much all champions, even the ones with the best track record.”
Almost all world champions have suffered disastrous race weekends similar to the one Piastri went through in Baku. But true champions have always come out of it as better drivers. This is exactly what Stella expects from Oscar as well.
While Oscar did not score any points in Azerbaijan, his Championship rival and teammate was unable to make the most of the situation, scoring only 6 points. This has reduced Piastri’s Championship lead from 31 to 25. So as it stands, Oscar still has the advantage to win the Championship.
Can McLaren bounce back in Singapore?
Last year we saw McLaren thrive in the streets of Singapore and it is likely that we could see the same this year as well. Singapore is always a stressful race for the drivers and the car itself because of the extreme heat. This year, we have seen McLaren have the pace advantage on hotter conditions.
Another factor that can contribute to McLaren’s chances at victory is the fact that Singapore is a high-downforce circuit, playing to the strenghts of the Papaya team.
However, this year has proven to be unpredictable. Given how difficult overtaking is with these modern Formula 1 cars, it will be crucial for McLaren to have a strong qualifying. If they do not have a track position, it would be extremely difficult to overtake around the narrow streets of Singapore.
🚨 | Despite two consecutive victories, Max Verstappen is not getting ahead of himself heading to Singapore which provides a completely different challenge for teams:
“The last two weekends have definitely been really positive for us. Both were low-downforce tracks, so we’ll…
— Fastest Pitstop (@FastestPitStop) September 21, 2025
Given his form in the last couple of races, we cannot count out Max Verstappen in any of the races going forward. Since Laurent Mekies took over for Christian Horner as team principal, the team has made certain changes in how they approach the car’s setup. This has made a real impact and has resulted in two major victories for Verstappen.
It will be interesting to see how things play out as the drivers head to Singapore in two weeks’ time.
