Oscar Piastri given clear instruction for new F1 season

Jacques Villeneuve believes Oscar Piastri must return to F1 after the winter break as a "completely new man" after the disappointment of losing the F1 drivers' championship.

The Australian led the standings for much of the 2025 season, but ultimately fell 13 points short of Lando Norris, with Max Verstappen between the McLaren team-mates in the final classification.

Following the victory at the Dutch Grand Prix, Piastri headed into the final nine rounds of the campaign with a comfortable 34-point advantage over the Briton, with the Red Bull driver a further 70 points adrift.

However, the 24-year-old's loss of form, which peaked during his messy Azerbaijan Grand Prix weekend and underwhelming performances in Austin, Mexico City and São Paulo saw him relinquish his once strong advantage.

It will have been a bitter pill for the nine-time grand prix winner to swallow, having gone seven rounds without a podium during the run-in, whilst Verstappen and Norris wiped away his lead.

When asked what Piastri will have learned from the experience, Villeneuve pinpointed one lesson the McLaren driver must take on board.

"You have to be tough," the 1997 F1 drivers' champion told PokerScout. "That’s the crux of it. On the outside, it looks all nice and chummy, but it’s a tough world.

"And it didn’t work out this year, and he knows he had that championship in his hand. He was controlling it.

"And that’s why it’s tougher for him than for Max, for example, who never expected to win it anyway.

"Out of the three drivers, it’s toughest for Oscar. Because he finished third in the end, behind Max, not even second. That will grate on him."

The former Williams, BAR, Renault and Sauber driver explained what Piastri must do over the offseason to return with a "fresh" slate and no lingering title-loss hangover.

"That’s something that he will have to digest this winter," the Canadian said.

"Hopefully for him, he comes back to that first test a completely new man, forgetting completely about this season. He starts from zero, and fresh."