Oscar Piastri Catches Max Verstappen Off Guard With Cooldown Room Question

Oscar Piastri appeared to catch Max Verstappen off guard with his spiky question in the cooldown room following the Abu Dhabi Grand Prix.

Verstappen won Sunday's Abu Dhabi Grand Prix, but his efforts were ultimately in vain as he was unable to make it five Formula 1 championships in a row.

Lando Norris claimed the first F1 world title of his racing career after his third-place finish at the Abu Dhabi Grand Prix was enough to seal his maiden championship.

Piastri, who was also in contention to win the title, finished the race behind Verstappen and in third place in the drivers' championship.

Race winner Verstappen, Piastri and Norris convened in the cooldown room following the Abu Dhabi Grand Prix.

Norris made his way into the cooldown room, where the Dutchman and the Australian had been chatting about the race.

Max Verstappen pipped Oscar Piastri to win the Abu Dhabi Grand Prix. Image: Getty

Piastri began the conversation by bringing up the cars.

"At least we don't have have to drive them again [this generation of cars]," he said.

To which the four-time F1 champion replied: "Let's see what we get next year."

After an extended pause, Piastri followed up with a second comment.

He asked Verstappen: "Didn't want to back everyone up?"

Max Verstappen, Oscar Piastri and Lando Norris on the podium at the Abu Dhabi Grand Prix. Image: Getty

Before the race, there had been suggestions that Verstappen would try and replicate the tactics used by Lewis Hamilton in 2016 when he tried to back up title rival Nico Rosberg into the chasing pack.

The 28-year-old, however, did not deploy such tactics and instead secured a commanding first place finish to seal his eighth victory of 2025.

Replying to Piastri, Verstappen said: "When I heard the top 16 were still in the pit window, I thought that wasn't too bad."

Piastri won seven races in the 2025 season, recording an impressive 410 points to finish third in the drivers' championship standings.

Speaking after Sunday's race, he said: "I think today yes [I can be satisfied], we gave it everything. We tried a bit of a gamble on strategy and tried absolutely everything to try and win the race and give ourselves the best chance to win a championship."

On his overall season, the 24-year-old added: "When things have been good this year, I've felt unstoppable at points and to even be able to get to that point is a pretty cool feeling.

"There has been plenty of times when that has not been the case and I think I've learnt a lot of lessons on how to deal with tough moments and adversity from different directions.

"Ultimately, I've learnt a lot about myself and I've been in championship battles in the junior categories, but in F1 you've got a little bit extra to it.

"I've learnt plenty about that this year and I think that will only help me going forward."