Oscar Piastri heads into Formula 1’s return to Malaysia aiming to turn a stronger Baku performance into a result, with the Australian describing Sepang’s abrasive surface as looking like “sandpaper” ahead of the rescheduled Bahrain Grand Prix.
Formula 1 is racing at Malaysia’s Sepang International Circuit for the first time since 2017 this weekend, with the venue hosting the rescheduled Bahrain Grand Prix after the Sakhir round was relocated amid the Middle East conflict, according to ABC News.
Piastri’s sandpaper warning
The McLaren driver, who has not previously raced at Sepang, told reporters the 5.543km track looks like sandpaper and that tyre degradation is expected to be a major factor. ABC reported Pirelli has also warned teams to expect challenging conditions on a relatively abrasive surface.
“I don’t know how much racing or track running there’s been recently. And anything that has been, the rain probably washes it off every afternoon anyway,” Piastri said, per ABC. “So it’s going to be a pretty tough weekend for everyone.”
Baku positives, result still missing
Speaking to Speedcafe, Piastri said Azerbaijan was the first weekend in a while where he felt back in control despite finishing 14th after a Turn 1 lock-up on a Safety Car restart.
“There’s been more than a few setbacks this year I think. There’s definitely a lot of positives I can take from last weekend,” Piastri said. “Baku was the first time in a while where I felt that I was actually in control of things and able to be back at a level I’m happy at.”
“Obviously the result wasn’t what I wanted, but I felt much happier with my personal performance and the way us as a team were able to get more out of the car,” he added. “I need to try and obviously replicate that everywhere we go and then finish the job in terms of results.”
Why Sepang may suit McLaren — with caveats
Piastri expects Sepang’s high-speed corners to suit McLaren better than Baku, while long straights remain a relative weakness. He also played down measuring every session against championship-leading Mercedes’ upgrade package, telling Speedcafe the focus is extracting more from himself and the MCL40 with an eye on 2027.
“I’m not going to win the drivers’ championship this year. We’re not going to win the constructors’ championship,” he said. “Obviously we want to win as many races as we can and finish second in the constructors if we can. But for me, and I think for the team as well, there’s very much an eye on how we can improve, how we can learn and how we can come out strong next year.”
FP1 snapshot
In opening practice at Sepang, The Race listed Max Verstappen fastest, with George Russell second and Isack Hadjar third. Piastri was 11th, 1.756 seconds off Verstappen’s pace, with teammate Lando Norris 12th.
Unconfirmed at package time: how Mercedes’ Sepang upgrade will translate across the full weekend, and whether afternoon storms will disrupt remaining practice and qualifying. Race day is Sunday afternoon AEST (local evening).
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