Oscar Piastri addresses red flag impact after shock early qualifying exit

Oscar Piastri has played down suggestions that a late red flag cost him a place in Q3 at Interlagos, insisting his Q2 elimination in Brazil came down to tyre choice and timing rather than bad luck.

The McLaren driver was eliminated in 12th place in a rain-hit qualifying session at the São Paulo Grand Prix, well adrift of team-mate Lando Norris, who took pole position with a 1m 27.470s lap.

Piastri's best effort of 1m 30.369s left him more than two tenths outside the top 10 as conditions shifted from wet to intermediate tyres during the session.

Q2 was red-flagged with around 45 seconds remaining after Rafael Camara crashed his Haas at the final real braking zone, denying several drivers, including Piastri, the chance to complete a final improving lap.

Reflecting on the session, Piastri admitted McLaren may have left the switch to inters too late.

"I just finished a lap, but I think we probably went onto the inters a little bit too late and needed that extra lap or two to really get some temperature in them," Piastri told select media, including RacingNews365.

"Some of the lines I was using on the wets definitely didn't work on the inters. So, yeah, some things to review, of course.

"But yeah, I think with another lap and maybe slightly better decisions, we could have been there [in Q3]."

Oscar Piastri hopeful of dry São Paulo GP

Pressed on whether the red flag itself was to blame for his early exit, Piastri was reluctant to point the finger at the timing of Camara's crash.

Asked to clarify whether he was blaming the red flag for his exit, Piastri replied: "I definitely would have got one more lap in. But, you know, same for everybody.

"Everyone would have got another lap, so I'm not sure. I think there was definitely a lot more time out there. But yeah, you just need to be on the right tyre at the right time."

Looking ahead to the race, the Australian said he felt comfortable with McLaren's pace in dry conditions over the weekend, regardless of what the forecast brings for Sunday.

Discussing if a wet or dry race would best suit him, Piastri said: "I'm not sure. I think we looked good in the dry. I certainly felt pretty comfortable this weekend.

"I feel like things were going well. So yeah, wait and see what we get. I think if it's dry, then we've got a good baseline. But we'll have to wait and see."