Oscar Piastri christens new ‘class of the field’ after ‘clearly big’ upgrade

SINGAPORE – Oscar Piastri believes Red Bull has joined Mercedes in being “class of the field”, citing the team’s upgrades in Azerbaijan as a potential source.

Max Verstappen took his first win of the season in Malaysia last time out, and hassled George Russell all the way to the line in Baku as the pair battled it out for victory.

Oscar Piastri dubs Red Bull as new ‘class of the field’ after recent updates

Red Bull introduced a series of new parts onto the RB22 in Baku and, while the team is not expected to bring any further significant updates for the remainder of the season, Piastri believes the update “clearly was big”, given its performance boost in recent rounds.

Red Bull updated its sidepods, along with bringing improvements to floor geometry and flow conditioning, with Verstappen and Isack Hadjar going on to secure a double podium that weekend.

Given how Verstappen went on to keep the field at arm’s length in Sepang a week later, too, Piastri feels that Red Bull has taken a step towards the front of the pack to join Mercedes in earnest.

As for how McLaren fits into the picture in Singapore, however, the Australian is keeping a lid on the team’s expectations for now.

“Mercedes have been very strong the whole season, obviously, and I think Baku, with the long straights there, it wasn’t a big surprise that they were so quick,” Piastri explained to PlanetF1.com and accredited media at Marina Bay. “I think, considering how many straights there were in Malaysia, it was surprising they weren’t faster.

“I think whatever Red Bull put on their car in Baku clearly was big because I think Baku kind of went under the radar with where they qualified and Max’s engine problem.

“I think if he had have started at the front in Baku, obviously he put George [Russell] under a lot of pressure at the end of the race, but I think he would have put George under a lot of pressure for the whole race, and then obviously in Malaysia, he was definitely the quickest car and driver combination.

Looking ahead to the Singapore Grand Prix

Singapore GP predictions: Verstappen win, Antonelli puts two fingers on the trophy, Perez scores

Singapore Grand Prix weather: What is the risk of rain at Marina Bay this weekend?

“So, I definitely think the others around us are making progress. Us and Ferrari kind of seem to to-and-fro a little bit, but Mercedes have always been the class of the field, and I think Red Bull have kind of joined them in the last couple of weeks.

“We’ll see what we’re like this weekend. Obviously, slow corners have not been our strongest point this year, and street circuits neither really.

“I’m not going to set my expectations super high, but again, being a Sprint weekend, it gives a few opportunities to pull something out of the bag.

“The track surface here is quite smooth. It got resurfaced a few years ago, for the most part, so maybe we’ll be able to pull something forward but, again, it’s always pretty close. So, if we are ahead of the other teams, it’s never going to be by much.”

Piastri is seeking a return to the podium for the first time since the Miami Grand Prix in May, and last appeared on the Singapore podium in 2024.

Additional reporting by Thomas Maher

Want to be the first to know exclusive information from the F1 paddock? Join our broadcast channel on WhatsApp to get the scoop on the latest developments from our team of accredited journalists.

You can also subscribe to the PlanetF1 YouTube channel for exclusive features, hear from our paddock journalists with stories from the heart of Formula 1 and much more!

Read next: Helmut Marko drops huge F1 engine claim after Malaysia’s software chaos