OSCAR PIASTRI was involved in an awkward interview after learning his qualifying time had been deleted on live TV.
The McLaren ace had put in a strong lap to initially score an impressive P4, one ahead of Lewis Hamilton.
GettyOscar Piastri thought he had scored a P3 in Qatar[/caption]
But the McLaren driver was then told his lap time had been deleted
GettyPiastri did media duties with George Russell, left, and Max Verstappen[/caption]
But Piastri was then bumped up to P3 after team-mate Lando Norris – who had put himself in P2 – saw his lap time deleted for exceeding track limits.
A jubilant Piastri had taken up the microphone for the interviews the top three drivers do after qualifying and a race, seemingly confirming his place in the order.
However, the Aussie soon found himself falling foul to the same treatment as his team-mate.
While in the middle of his interview, Piastri was told his lap time had been deleted, cruelly swiping a top three away.
Piastri, 22, was then told he would now be starting P6, putting his thumbs up before sarcastically remarking “wonderful,” and heading off screen.
Fans could not help but feel sorry for the rookie, who scored his first-ever F1 podium at the most recent race in Japan.
One said: “That was so brutal omg.”
A second commented: “The dejected thumbs up too .”
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A third wrote: “Poor guy! Took it like a champ, can’t hate him I am afraid.”
Another typed: “He said ‘I’ll try again next time’. He’s so cool.”
While a fifth added: “I would actually start sobbing.”
Despite the disappointment, Piastri provided a brilliant response on his Twitter page, sharing a pic of himself alongside pole sitter Max Verstappen and P2 George Russell with the caption: “P1, 2 & 6 .”
Piastri also told Sky Sports F1: “Obviously it’s a shame.
“The car felt reasonable, I just pushed the limit of the car in the last lap. It’s a shame because the car was quick.
“We get another crack at it tomorrow with qualifying and then the Sprint too. We’ll see what we can do.
“I think it’s very tight and it’s so easy to make mistakes. The track’s very slippery so that’s not making things easy for us.
“We’ll try again, obviously it’s a shame that we’re a bit further back down for the main race where the most points are but there’s definitely points up for grabs tomorrow.”
Verstappen can make history by winning the F1 driver’s title BEFORE the full race on Sunday.
Russell joins him on the front row, with Hamilton in third.
While Piastri’s interview was more of the heartwrenching persuasion, Aston Martin driver Lance Stroll gave an X-rated seven-word post-qualifying interview after finishing P17.
The Canadian was also pictured appearing to shove his coach in the garage.
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