Oscar Piastri highlights key difference in first verdict of F1 2026 car

Oscar Piastri predicted there would be “a lot of points where you can make a difference as a driver” as he looked ahead to the 2026 season.

While the majority of the grid is dealing with the northern hemisphere winter, Piastri was able to return home to Australia for the break and has spent some time at the cricket where he was asked his verdict for the next season.

Oscar Piastri makes F1 2026 prediction

Piastri was back in his hometown of Melbourne for the fourth Ashes Test between Australia and England and just before the dramatic conclusion, he was interviewed by Fox Sports about his own profession, F1.

Asked about what fans can expect for 2026 and the regulation changes, Piastri said the driver skill could become more of a factor.

“There’ll be some subtle differences, but I think it’s still going to look like an F1 car,” he said. “But the engines are going to be very different, a lot more electrical power versus the combustion engine.

“There’s going to be a lot of things for us as drivers to get used to, a lot of things that we would have never had to have done in a race car before in terms of managing that battery power more.

“So there’s going to be a lot of points where you can make a difference as a driver, which I think for the fans, should be exciting.”

McLaren was the dominant force in 2025, securing both Championships for the first time since 1998, but Piastri admitted there was no guarantee they would be one of the leading teams in 2026.

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“With a new rule set, you never quite know who’s going to nail it and who’s not. So hopefully we’re one of the people that nail it.”

As for 2025, Piastri said he was “incredibly proud” of what he had achieved, even if the title got away from him.

“Obviously, it was intense, but I think looking back on the whole year, incredibly proud of what I was able to do, what we were able to achieve as a team.

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“To have a car as dominant as we did, obviously the back end of the season, a few hurdles and few obstacles but when I look back on my season, there’s definitely things to work on, things to learn.

“A lot of lessons learned there, but we’re all just very proud of the work we put in.”

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