Oscar Piastri expresses hope for better performance from McLaren at the upcoming Singapore Grand Prix after struggling in Malaysia. George Russell, who will start from the back due to a grid penalty following last weekend's power unit failure, is now 84 points behind championship leader Kimi Antonelli with only 183 points left in the season. Russell faces an uphill battle and promises an "all-out attack" to salvage his title hopes.
Written locally by qwen2.5:14b on 2026-10-09,
using this article's own text rather than the other coverage of the
same event (that is the story summary below).
In short:
Oscar Piastri is hoping McLaren will be more competitive during the Singapore Grand Prix weekend after a disappointing round last time in Malaysia.
asserted
McLaren → hop → Malaysia
George Russell will start from the back of the grid after taking a penalty following last weekend's power unit failure for the Mercedes driver.
What's next?
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What → start → driver
The Singapore Grand Prix will be held at the Marina Bay circuit on Sunday night.
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Prix → hold → night
Following a difficult weekend in Malaysia, Oscar Piastri is hoping McLaren will enjoy better results and have a more competitive car in Singapore.
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McLaren → follow → Singapore
Piastri finished sixth at last weekend's Bahrain Grand Prix in Malaysia, after his team sent him out on slick tyres in wet conditions to start the race, forcing the Australian into the pits as the race began.
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race → finish → pits
The McLaren driver was able to fight his way back through the field, at times showing strong pace, but said sixth was the best result the team could hope for.
uncertain
team → fight → pace
"We know we've not been as competitive as we would have liked the last couple of weekends,: Piastri said in Singapore ahead of this weekend's racing.
"In Malaysia, I think sixth was more or less what we could've done."
uncertain
we → know → what
McLaren enjoyed a mid-season resurgence, with Piastri's teammate claiming back-to-back wins in Hungary and the Netherlands.
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teammate → enjoy → Hungary
Norris won those races from pole position, and then again was fastest in qualifying for the Spanish Grand Prix in September.
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Norris → win → September
But the reigning constructors' champions were not realistically in contention for wins, but did show promise at times.
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champions → reign → times
It is that inconsistency during weekends which has hurt McLaren in 2026, and something Piastri is hoping can be improved to end the season, starting in Singapore.
"
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Piastri → hurt → Singapore
At certain points in [Malaysia], we looked very quick.
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we → look → Malaysia
It's in line with the rest of the year — if you can get the car into the right window, it's very quick.
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it → get → window
"But we've struggled to get it there for a lot of the last two weekends.
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we → struggle → weekends
Hopefully we can make things a bit easier this weekend."
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things → make → ?
Russell cops grid penalty, promises 'all-out attack'
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Russell → cop → attack
George Russell's dream of a maiden F1 world title is hanging by a thread, after the Briton suffered a power unit failure with five laps remaining last weekend in Malaysia.
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laps → hang → Malaysia
Following his retirement, Russell is now 84 points adrift of teammate and championship leader Kimi Antonelli, with a maximum of 183 points left in the championship.
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maximum → follow → championship
If Antonelli is able to outscore Russell by 16 or more points this weekend, then he can mathematically win the title as early as the following round in Austin, Texas.
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he → outscore → Austin
To make matters worse for Russell, he will start Sunday's Singapore Grand Prix from the back of the grid, after being forced to take on new power unit components which exceed the yearly limit for a driver.
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which → make → driver
This comes directly on the back of last weekend's power unit failure which ended his race early.
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which → come → race
With an improbably steep mountain to climb to maintain a glimmer of hope in the title race, and starting from the back of the field for Sunday's race, Russell has promised to throw everything at this weekend.
"All-out attack; just trying to enjoy the weekend," he said.
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he → climb → weekend
"Obviously, if you could choose where to take the penalty in the season, this [track] would be probably the second bottom of the list after Monaco.
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track → choose → Monaco
But unfortunately, just with how things have panned out, we have no choice but to take it here."
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we → pan → it
Antonelli started 19th for the Italian Grand Prix at Monza after taking on new power units, but drove one of the finest races in recent memory to claim a remarkable victory.
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Antonelli → start → victory
Hopes for Russell to replicate that are slim, with the Marina Bay street circuit tight, slow, and notoriously difficult to overtake on.
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circuit → replicate → that
The Aporia
