Piastri Crashes, Championship Lead Shrinks at Azerbaijan Grand Prix

Oscar Piastri experienced a disastrous weekend at the 2025 Azerbaijan Grand Prix, crashing out on the first lap after jumping the start and misjudging the grip at Turn 5. The Australian, leading the Formula 1 championship, admitted to making simple errors and lapses in judgment, including a poor start and locking up before hitting the barriers, which ended his streak of 34 consecutive finishes and scoring in every race this season. Despite this setback, his main title rival and McLaren teammate Lando Norris, who finished seventh after another slow pit stop, was only able to reduce Piastri's championship lead to 25 points. Piastri acknowledged the mistakes were entirely his fault, attributing the crash to underestimating dirty air and grip levels, and expressed disappointment but maintained focus on regrouping for the Singapore Grand Prix. McLaren's hopes to clinch their second consecutive Constructors' Championship were also delayed due to the weekend's results. The incident raised questions about whether the pressure of the championship battle might be affecting Piastri, though he insisted there was nothing significantly different about his mindset during the race weekend.