Ferrari launch edge under scrutiny as Oscar Piastri fires back

Oscar Piastri has dismissed suggestions that Ferrari holds a launch advantage over the field, insisting McLaren’s starts have been stronger this season.

McLaren duo Lando Norris and Oscar Piastri will line up on the second row of the grid for the Sprint at the Canadian Grand Prix, just ahead of the Ferrari teammates, but the Australian doesn’t feel a need to keep one eye on his mirrors.

Oscar Piastri dismisses Ferrari launch fears with McLaren start verdict

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The top four teams will line up two-by-two for Saturday’s 23-lap Sprint at the Circuit Gilles Villeneuve.

George Russell and Kimi Antonelli locked out the front row ahead of the McLarens, who have Lewis Hamilton and Charles Leclerc behind them, followed by Max Verstappen and Isack Hadjar.

But while the Ferrari pair is starting fifth and sixth, the SF-26’s launches so far this season suggest they cannot be ruled out of the fight. Even heading into Turn 1.

Ferrari has led laps in every race this season, Grands Prix and Sprints, except the short race in Miami. And that was the only time both McLarens started ahead of the Scuderia pairing.

As such, Piastri isn’t worried about keeping one eye on his mirrors; his focus will be on the Mercedes drivers ahead.

“I mean our starts have been better than the Ferraris’ all year, so we’re confident in ours,” he told Sky Sports.

“I’m sure it’s only a matter of time before Mercedes get theirs competitive as well.

“But until that time comes, we’ll try our best to take advantage of it.”

This year’s race starts have been complicated by the removal of the MGU-H from the new power unit formula.

By doing so, a key tool that the turbocharged engines needed for launches was removed, as the MGU-H previously helped cover turbo lag across the lower rev range. Without it, the cars take longer to prepare for launch.

Ferrari reportedly built an engine with a smaller turbo that allows it to get into the start configuration earlier than rival power unit manufacturers, including Mercedes.

Some of that advantage was negated when the FIA introduced a blue-light warning to let drivers know that the start procedure was about to begin, while it was further eroded in Miami when motorsport’s governing body implemented a ‘low power start detection’ system.

That triggers an automatic MGU-K deployment if a car is low on acceleration shortly after the driver has released the clutch.

Ferrari team principal Fred Vasseur admits he wasn’t impressed, but it is what it is.

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“Politically,” he told The Race, “[it] was well played but not very fair.”

He added: “It was a decision based on safety grounds. It’s up to them. Even if everybody is against, they can decide.

“It was a bit harsh for us.

“I understand what they did for safety grounds, but the other option would have been to ask them [the other cars] to start from the pit lane if they think it was not safe.

“For us, it’s also a choice that we made. We developed an engine with a criteria and somehow they changed the rule at the last minute.”

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