Piastri wants to "go out and try and win every race I can"

Despite taking over the lead in the drivers' championship with his second consecutive victory, Oscar Piastri claims that he still wants to "go out and try and win every race I can".

Max Verstappen started from the pole position after having delivered an eye-catching performance in Saturday’s qualifying session. However, the Dutchman launched off the line well, but so did Oscar Piastri, and the pair went wheel-to-wheel into the first corner before Verstappen cut across the apex.

The reigning champion managed to hold on to the lead, but the stewards judged that he left the track and gained a lasting advantage by taking to the run-off area on the outside of the first corner. The Dutchman received a five-second penalty for his manoeuvre.

The Dutchman led until the pit stops, serving that penalty costing him a place to Piastri. From there, he couldn’t get close enough to put Piastri under any significant pressure.

The Aussie did not fail to capitalize on the situation, and took his second consecutive victory after his dominant performance in Sakhir to take over the championship lead, becoming the first Australian driver since Mark Webber to find himself on the top of the drivers’ standings.

As for Piastri’s team-mate Lando Norris, he had to work harder as he started from tenth on the grid. The Briton elected to start the race on the hards, and he worked his way up through the field in a long first stint.

While McLaren had been expected to dominate the race, Charles Leclerc and Max Verstappen’s surprisingly strong race pace meant that Norris failed to secure a podium place in Jeddah despite his eye-catching speed in the closing stages of the race.

Commenting on the race in Jeddah, Piastri insisted: "I mean, the fact that I crossed the line first, to be honest. It wasn't the easiest of wins. I think the start was tough, the first stint was tough behind Max. And then once I had some clean air, it was a bit easier to manage. But I still couldn't afford to take my foot off the gas.

"It was a difficult race, and Max was quick behind me, so I had to keep pushing. And, yep, I think I could control it reasonably well, but it was a little bit tighter than I would have liked.

Piastri set his fastest lap of the race on the final lap. Asked whether it suggested that he had more in the tank, Piastri denied to confirm the suggestion.

"Maybe. I don't know how long I could've done that, but I felt like I was taking decent risks for the race. The last lap, obviously, I wanted to see exactly what I had, but there's not too much point taking a crazy risk as well.

"So I think once we had some clean air, our pace was okay. But the end of the Medium stint, I had nothing for Max and it was a struggle. So I think the pace wasn't as much of an advantage as I wanted it to be, but it was good enough.

Asked about whether Red Bull had the quickest car in Jeddah, Piastri said that he felt that McLaren had the upper hand over its rivals at the Saudi Arabian Grand Prix.

"No. I think our car was still quicker. I think it was difficult to be in dirty air. Max was quicker than I expected for sure in the race. I thought over one lap it wasn't a huge surprise to see Max quick, but in the race, I wasn't expecting to struggle so much at the end of the Medium stint, that's for sure.

"So clearly we've got some work to do. I think our car is still very good, but when you look at the layout here compared to Suzuka, it's the most similar so far, and it's been the two where Max and Red Bull have been closer.

"I think we still have an advantage. I don't think it's as big on surfaces like this and layouts like this, but we still have a very strong car at the moment.

With Piastri leading now the drivers' championship, he was asked whether he will change his approach. The Aussie insisted that he still wants to win every race he can.

"No. I still want to go out and try and win every race I can. I was saying before, I'm not that bothered by the fact that I'm leading the championship, but I'm proud of the work and the reasons behind why we're leading the championship. Melbourne wasn't a great start to the year in terms of results.

"But from the moment I've hit the track this season, I felt like I've been in a good place. Leading the championship is a result of all the hard work we've done in the off-season, the hard work I've done personally, the hard work the team's done.

"I'm more proud of all of those things than I am of the fact that I'm leading the championship because, ultimately, I want to be leading it after round 24, not round five.