Piastri: It is important to maintain team unity.

      Oscar Piastri leads the drivers' championship, although his advantage over Lando Norris, his McLaren teammate, has been reduced to nine points. There is constant talk that, as the end of the season approaches, relations between them will inevitably become strained, but so far those predictions have not come true.

      Zak Brown, CEO of McLaren Racing, values both of his drivers and is very pleased that their relationship is still characterised by "mutual trust and respect."

      "Our relationship hasn't actually changed," Oscar confirmed in an interview with McLaren's press office. "I agree the atmosphere in the championship this year is different, but our relationship remains the same. As before, we cooperate, try to help the team and want to get the same from the car.

      At the same time, we're both well aware that we want to race for this team for a long time and continue to succeed together. Of course, healthy competition is important, but it's equally important to maintain team unity — I suppose we're both subconsciously inclined to that...

      Obviously we don't want to lose points, so we just aim to get the best possible results each weekend and try not to think about the championship as a whole. I think I'm handling the pressure pretty well, but I don't fixate on it. The pressure will only increase, and by the time we reach the closing part of the season it will peak."

      According to Oscar, this year he is benefiting from the experience he gained in the junior categories, where he won three consecutive titles in Formula Renault, F3 and F2.

      "I won all three titles in different ways," he recalls. "In Formula Renault I was quick but made a lot of mistakes. In F3 my pace wasn't that great, but I was consistent and constantly in contention for strong results. But the best of the three, in my opinion, was the season in F2, because I was already able to combine pace and consistency.

      That's when I learned that there's no single way to win championships. Of course you want to be as quick as possible, but it's also important to know how to take advantage of good moments and to be willing to take risks."