Australian politician raises Oscar Piastri-McLaren F1 title 'conspiracy'

Australian senator Matt Canavan has used a government committee meeting to light-heartedly ask if McLaren is "biased against Oscar Piastri" in the F1 title fight. 

Piastri heads into this weekend's Abu Dhabi Grand Prix showdown as the third of three contenders for the drivers' title, coming into the race on 392 points, compared to 408 for team-mate Lando Norris and 396 for Max Verstappen.

To be champion, Piastri must finish either first or second, with a win meaning Norris must finish sixth or lower, regardless of Verstappen's finish. A P2 for Piastri would require Norris to be ninth or lower and Verstappen fourth or lower.

After Norris's retirement in the Dutch GP, Piastri held a 34-point lead over his team-mate and a 104-point gap over Verstappen, but a drastic wobble in form has dropped the Melbourne-native out of the hotseat, including a trio of fifth-places in the United States, Mexico, and Brazil, with the Austin and Interlagos Sprints featuring DNFs in the Sprint.

Piastri returned to form in Qatar, dominating the weekend, but was unable to win after McLaren's strategic decision not to pit under the safety car, handing Verstappen a crucial win. 

However, despite his drop in form, some fans have claimed McLaren is "biased" against Piastri and "favouring" Norris, with the Australian particularly aggrieved at Norris barging past at the start of the Singapore GP and not being told to give the place back.

In a committee meeting of the Australian Senate Rural, Regional Affairs, and Transportation Legislation Committee, Canavan asked secretary Jim Betts if McLaren "is biased" and "costing" Piastri the title.

"It’s been a bit of a frustrating night for some Australians,” said Canavan, a National Party senator for Queensland. 

"I don’t know who to ask this to, but you deal with transport and cars. So do you think McLaren is biased against Oscar Piastri and costing him the world championship?"

The hearing room then erupted into laughter as Betts tried his best not to answer the question, with Regional Affairs minister Anthony Chisholm then being asked.

"I definitely think he's copped some raw decisions this year," came the reply.