Oscar Piastri's 2026 season, measured: two races he never started, and a gearbox in Hungary
Oscar Piastri did not start either of the first two Grands Prix of 2026, then led Hungary until his gearbox failed. He is seventh on 120 points. Every race, and the radio, including the messages that show how stewards' investigations shape a race.
Oscar Piastri qualified fifth for his home Grand Prix in Melbourne, in front of a record crowd. On the way to the grid he spun at turn 4 and hit the barrier. He did not start.
He said afterwards the car gave him an unexpected and "not insignificant" power boost on the exit. A week later in China, an electrical problem with his power unit kept both McLarens in the garage. His first Grand Prix start of 2026 came in Japan, in round three, where he finished second. "Turns out we're alright once we start," he said.
Fourteen rounds in, he is seventh on 120 points, with no wins. Every message he exchanged with his engineer on air this season, from the Canadian Grand Prix onward, is on
, with the audio and a transcript coloured by who is speaking.
Every race of his 2026 season
The first seven rounds:
Round
Grand Prix
Started
Finished
1
Australian
Qualified 5th
Did not start
2
Chinese
Qualified 5th
Did not start
3
Japanese
3rd
2nd
4
Miami
7th
3rd
5
Canadian
4th
11th
6
Monaco
7th
4th
7
Barcelona
7th
5th
Grand Prix results only. Sprint results are below.
The next seven:
Round
Grand Prix
Started
Finished
8
Austrian
7th
4th
9
British
8th
11th
10
Belgian
6th
5th
11
Hungarian
3rd
Retired, lap 56
12
Dutch
4th
6th
13
Italian
6th
5th
14
Spanish (Madrid)
7th
8th
Starting positions are the grid after penalties.
The season in numbers
0 wins and 2 Grand Prix podiums: second in Japan and third in Miami.
2 races not started, Melbourne and China, and 1 retirement, Hungary.
Points in 9 of the 12 Grands Prix he started, never lower than eighth when he scored.
120 points, 99 from Grands Prix and 21 from sprints, seventh in the championship, 66 behind his team mate Lando Norris.
His sprints: sixth in China, second in Miami, fourth in Canada, seventh at Silverstone, fifth at Zandvoort.
Hungary: leading, then nothing
Hungary was the race that should have changed his season. He made an excellent start, took the lead when Norris ran wide at turn 3, and led the first half of the race. McLaren pitted him first, and he rejoined in traffic. While he was lapping Carlos Sainz, the two made contact, and it cost him several seconds. His radio from that moment was not polite:
Oscar PiastriMcLaren · Hungarian Grand Prix 2026 · Race · 15:58:35 local
DriverGet out of the f***ing way, you idiots! Oh my god.
"Get out of the f***ing way, you idiots! Oh my god." On lap 56 his gearbox failed. "I don't know what broke, but I lost all gears," he said. Norris won the race.
Canada: the call he wanted to make
In a wet and drying Montreal race, he could feel the conditions changing before the strategy did:
Oscar PiastriMcLaren · Canadian Grand Prix 2026 · Race · 16:04:38 local
DriverIt feels like the rain stopped quite a lot now, so what are we thinking to do?
EngineerOscar, Hawker, the rain should ease from here, but everyone's going to have very cold tires.
DriverYeah, but I think now it is time for slicks, so should we just box?
"It feels like the rain stopped quite a lot now, so what are we thinking to do?... I think now it is time for slicks, so should we just box?" He finished eleventh, a lap down.
The radio that shows how races are really decided
Twice this season his engineer told him that a rival was under investigation, and what that could mean for his result.
At Spa, with Lewis Hamilton ahead:
Oscar PiastriMcLaren · Belgian Grand Prix 2026 · Race · 16:21:45 local
EngineerHamilton under investigation post-race for unsafe release. We'll stay within five seconds. Hamilton under investigation post-race.
"Hamilton under investigation post-race for unsafe release. We'll stay within five seconds." If Hamilton had been given a five-second penalty, Piastri staying within five seconds would have moved him up a place. Hamilton was classified fourth and Piastri fifth.
At Monza, the same logic about George Russell:
Oscar PiastriMcLaren · Italian Grand Prix 2026 · Race · 16:32:30 local
EngineerRussell is under investigation, being 25-2, if we can stay within 10 seconds that could be an opportunity.
"Russell is under investigation... if we can stay within 10 seconds that could be an opportunity." Russell finished second.
Those investigations, and whether they end in a penalty, are published by the stewards as documents during and after the race. Most fans never see them.
What is left
Nine rounds remain, starting with Baku on 26 September. Piastri is 25 points behind Max Verstappen for sixth. His team mate's season is measured in Lando Norris's 2026, their head to head in Oscar Piastri vs Lando Norris, and the whole table in the 2026 standings.
What this measures, and what it does not
Results, grid positions and points come from Formula 1's official timing data and match the championship standings after the Spanish Grand Prix.
The radio count is what Formula 1 broadcast, not everything said. Our 2026 radio begins at the Canadian Grand Prix.
Quotes are taken only from lines where the speaker label and the words agree. Where we have shortened a message, the cut is marked with an ellipsis.
Frequently asked questions
Why did Oscar Piastri not start the 2026 Australian Grand Prix?
He crashed on his way to the grid, spinning into the barrier at turn 4 after what he described as an unexpected power boost on the exit. He had qualified fifth.
Why did Oscar Piastri retire from the 2026 Hungarian Grand Prix?
His gearbox failed on lap 56. He had led the first half of the race and lost time in contact with Carlos Sainz while lapping him.
Has Oscar Piastri won a race in 2026?
Not in the first fourteen rounds. His best result is second in the Japanese Grand Prix, his first Grand Prix start of the season.
Where is Oscar Piastri in the 2026 championship?
Seventh, on 120 points after the Spanish Grand Prix, 25 behind Max Verstappen and 66 behind Lando Norris.
Sources
Race and sprint results, grid positions and points: Formula 1 timing data via FastF1, matching the championship standings published after the 2026 Spanish Grand Prix
Every radio message quoted: our own team radio archive
See the investigation, not just the radio
"Under investigation post-race" is the moment a result can still change, and the decision arrives as a stewards' document, not on the broadcast.
The Formula Dream app collects every FIA document of the weekend as the stewards publish it, so you can read the investigation and its outcome, and plays live driver radio as it is broadcast, transcript beside the audio. There is also a live timing Dashboard, currently in beta.
Free, no subscription, no ads, independent. Not affiliated with Formula 1.
Nineteen Chinese Grands Prix have been held in Shanghai since 2004. Lewis Hamilton won six, pole won twelve, and in 2026 Kimi Antonelli took the first win of his career there, at 19, with Hamilton on the podium for Ferrari for the first time. Every winner, grid slot and safety car, measured.
