Oscar Piastri reveals one area where he's 'lacking at the moment' compared to his McLaren teammate Lando Norris

McLaren rookie Oscar Piastri recently pinpointed where he is lacking in performance after the first two practice sessions of the 2023 F1 Saudi Arabian GP.

Though the Australian was much better than his teammate in the first session, he struggled quite a bit in the second one. He finished 14th and 19th in Friday's practice sessions.

The youngster started off by explaining how tight the midfield table looks during practice sessions. He further stated that he is quite comfortable with the car and can squeeze out more pace when needed. The McLaren driver said:

"I think we’ve got some improvements to try and make. The field was so tight in FP2, so anything small we can find, both on my side and on the team’s side, will go a long way I think. I think I’m pretty happy to push. I feel like I’m pretty comfortable with the car and where it’s good, where it’s not so good."

Despite the fact that certain aspects of the car appear to be good, Oscar Piastri admitted that he is struggling to maintain consistency on the track. He explained how he performed well on some of the laps but lacked pace on others.

Piastri said:

"It’s now just putting it all together really, which I think is sort of the last hurdle. It feels like I can do it here and there in different laps, but just putting it all in one, that last bit of consistency is what I’m lacking at the moment."

This is something his McLaren teammate Lando Norris excels at. The Brit is considered one of the most consistent drivers on the grid. Unfortunately, Piastri will need to gain a lot more experience in F1 to become as consistent as Norris.

This will be even more difficult for the Australian since McLaren does not have a good car at the moment.

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McLaren boss admits that the MCL60 is a 'midfield car'

In the 2023 F1 season, almost all the teams have stated how tight the midfield table really is.

McLaren's new team principal Andrea Stell recently admitted that the MCL60, their 2023 challenger, is a midfield car. However, he also pointed out that his team is working hard on the upgrade packages that will be introduced as the season progresses.

Speaking at a press conference ahead of the Bahrain GP, Stella said:

"I think testing confirmed that, at the moment, we are a midfield car. The midfield is proving to be quite compact, a couple of tenths can move you to the top; a couple of tenths and you can be at the bottom of the midfield."

"I think, for us, the focus is to maximize the package in the short term, but at the same time, focus on delivering our upgrade programme."

It is clear that the British team has taken a huge step back after 2022 when they finished fifth in the constructors' championship.