Brundle: Piastri Has Not Had a “Lucky Break” for Almost a Year
Piastri’s run of setbacks continues
Martin Brundle believes Oscar Piastri’s difficult Formula 1 run continued at the Hungarian Grand Prix, arguing that the McLaren driver has been denied any meaningful “lucky break” for almost a year.
The Australian was in a commanding position this time last season, leading the Drivers’ Championship by a considerable margin over teammate Lando Norris. However, after winning the Dutch Grand Prix, his campaign unravelled through a series of incidents, including tense intra-team moments surrounding McLaren’s ‘papaya rules’.
Piastri ultimately lost the title to Norris and finished third behind a resurgent Max Verstappen, who had been more than 100 points behind him only a handful of races earlier.
The 2026 season has offered little relief. Piastri crashed on his exploration lap before the Australian Grand Prix in Melbourne, then suffered another DNS in China. Although he secured a podium in Japan, he reached the summer break 36 points behind Norris, who claimed his and McLaren’s first victory of the season in Hungary.
The decisive moment in Hungary
Piastri’s Hungarian race was compromised before a transmission failure finally ended it. Brundle, writing in his Sky Sports F1 column, identified the second round of pit stops as the point at which victory slipped away.
“Piastri pitted on Lap 33 again to cover [Lewis] Hamilton on fresh tyres, and then Norris had his chance to prove he was indeed faster by running hard and pitting on Lap 39, giving him a decent tyre life offset to his teammate Piastri,” Brundle wrote.
On the same lap, Piastri was attempting to lap Carlos Sainz’s Williams while Sainz was battling Fernando Alonso. After Sainz ran wide at Turn 2, Piastri appeared to have been given the way through. Sainz then moved heavily back towards the racing line and collided with the race leader.
The incident cost Piastri crucial time, although he avoided spinning. More detail on the incident is available in this report on the Hungarian GP blue-flag failure.
Norris emerged from his pit stop in the lead and would not relinquish it. He continued to build his advantage, even making a third stop under a Virtual Safety Car on Lap 56 for fresher soft tyres before recovering Piastri’s McLaren after its transmission failure.
“The young Australian hasn’t been able to catch any kind of lucky break for the best part of a year now,” Brundle concluded.
Piastri will now look to the Dutch Grand Prix at Zandvoort for a change in momentum when Formula 1 returns from its summer break.
Ciara Gillan
Ciara is a Dublin native, award-winning film producer, podcaster and writer with 20 years of storytelling experience. A lifelong Leinster and Ireland rugby fan, she turned her attention to the grid after moving to Berlin and co-founding Formula Live Pulse. Now, she applies her producer’s brain to Formula 1, navigating the highs of Oscar Piastri’s rise and the unique stress of being an adopted Ferrari fan. She loves talking and talking about F1, if you give her the chance!