![\"Piastri](\"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/canada\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/06\/XPB_1412135_HiRes.jpg\")
\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tOscar Piastri has defended McLaren’s tyre strategy in Montreal. Image: XPB Images<\/p>\n
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\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tOscar Piastri has defended McLaren’s tyre strategy in Montreal. Image: XPB Images<\/p>\n
McLaren\u2019s decision to start both cars on intermediate tyres in Montreal ultimately backfired after conditions rapidly dried out.<\/p>\n
That left the team on the back foot in an ultimately pointless race<\/a> after Lando Norris retired with a gearbox issue<\/a> and Piastri finished 11th.<\/p>\n The Australian said the post-race debrief focused less on blame and more on understanding how the decision to start on intermediates unfolded.<\/p>\n \u201cI think it was just a review of how we ended making the decision we made,\u201d Piastri said.<\/p>\n \u201cI think there were very good reasons for making the decision we made.<\/p>\n \u201cPotentially some oversight on a few, what ended up being key factors that we need to do a better job of working with.\u201d<\/p>\n Buy tickets to the 2026 betr Darwin Triple Crown. Click here <\/a><\/p>\n Piastri maintained the call was finely balanced in the moment, with conditions shifting rapidly before the start.<\/p>\n \u201cI think at the time it was a very 50-50 call,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n \u201cAgain, as I said after the race, if it had kept raining for another couple of minutes it could\u2019ve looked like quite a different story.\u201d<\/p>\n He reiterated that McLaren was not alone in considering the switch, pointing to other teams that also explored the option.<\/p>\n \u201cWe know that there were others who wanted intermediates that couldn\u2019t get them in time,\u201d he explained.<\/p>\n \u201cSo I think for us there was a lot of logic behind it.<\/p>\n \u201cClearly it didn\u2019t work out the way we wanted, but I think it was just one of those ones you review and see how you can improve a bit.<\/p>\n \u201cObviously it looked dramatic, but I really don\u2019t think it was that dramatic.\u201d<\/p>\n Attention now turns to Monaco, where McLaren arrives marking its 1000th Grand Prix, with Piastri saying the occasion carries personal significance.<\/p>\n McLaren reveals livery for landmark 1000th race in F1<\/a><\/p>\n \u201cVery, very cool to be a part of,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n \u201cIt\u2019s a special thing for me to look back at and go \u2018I was one of the race winners for McLaren\u2019.<\/p>\n \u201cHopefully there are still plenty more to add.\u201d<\/p>\n While Monaco\u2019s unforgiving layout presents its own risks, Piastri said the new generation of cars should be better suited to the circuit than the predecessors, despite ongoing concerns around wheel locking.<\/p>\n \u201cYou always know that\u2019s a concern in Monaco, because obviously if you do it and it goes wrong, it goes very wrong,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n \u201cBut I think in general it\u2019ll be interesting to see. I think from a power unit side of things it should be more normal here, which is good.\u201d<\/p>\n He added that the characteristics of the 2026 cars could make for a more competitive weekend in the principality.<\/p>\n \u201cAnd the cars are probably more suited to this place than the previous generation of cars,\u201d Piastri reasoned.<\/p>\n \u201cSo it should be good fun I think.\u201d<\/p>\n Piastri also suggested Ferrari could emerge as a strong contender this weekend, pointing to their performance profile through slow-speed corners as a key advantage at the principality.<\/p>\n \u201cThe trend we\u2019ve seen from the start of the year is that they\u2019re generally the quickest in the corners and slower on the straights,\u201d Piastri said.<\/p>\n \u201cHere we don\u2019t have as many straights and we should be able to do all of them full power all the way to the end of the straight.<\/p>\n \u201cI think they\u2019ll definitely be towards the front.\u201d<\/p>\n Piastri sits sixth in the drivers\u2019 standings on 48 points after the first five rounds.<\/p>\n 2026 F1 Monaco Grand Prix \u2013 Schedule, how to watch, TV times & more<\/a><\/p>\n
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