The Australian Grand Prix fever is reaching a high point as the anticipation for the 2025 F1 season is through the roof. And even though there are many stars on the current grid including Lewis Hamilton and Max Verstappen, Oscar Piastri is rightfully dominating the spotlight as the home hero in Melbourne!
The way the race promoters have plastered Piastri all over the Australian sporting capital is remarkable. There are posters of the McLaren driver on trams and other public transport, murals of him with other stars like Verstappen and Charles Leclerc — one of which Piastri himself paid a visit to on Monday.
After Daniel Ricciardo’s exit, the Aussie public have found a worthy homegrown star who could be world champion in the near future. Piastri is entering his third season in the sport and this year, he certainly has the car to win the race at Albert Park, which is barely 10 minutes away from his house. Talk about a true home race!
However, the kind of promotional tactics the Australian Grand Prix corporation has implemented to build the hype around the 23-year-old may have become a barrage of embarrassment for his sister Hattie.
Hattie’s TikTok activity first indicated this when she commented, “I had to take a tram with my brother’s face on it to class the other day.“ It is surprising that Hattie isn’t ecstatic about her sibling getting the attention in their hometown.
she really is going through it 😭😭 pic.twitter.com/E7SHB4rWZ8
— ari (@baiegiadahori) March 10, 2025
The posters on the tram are not the only thing for Hattie to be embarrassed about. Piastri has recorded an announcement to be broadcast on the city’s public transport for the promotion of the Australian GP. Once that hits the speakers, his family members would surely feel a bit awkward.
Fans on X (formerly Twitter) do empathize with Hattie. One fan wrote, “Hattie piastri was not lying when she said ‘Oscar is EVERYWHERE in Melbourne. I just landed and have seen his face over 10 times”
hattie piastri was not lying when she said oscar is EVERYWHERE in melbourne. i just landed and have seen his face over 10 times pic.twitter.com/brYNV9GXv3
— hailee!! AT AUS GP!!! (@smoothscuderia) March 9, 2025
Another user highlighted how she would react to listening to Oscar’s voice on any public transport.
Hattie Piastri when she hears her brother’s voice at the public transport pic.twitter.com/NSJJr0wONz
— David ✨MAYHEM DAY! (@thepoptheory) March 11, 2025
The fans would naturally be playing along with the fun brother-sister narrative that Hattie shares with her sibling. But her mood may change if the Melbourne-born driver could break the home race jinx of his compatriots come 16th of March.
Oscar Piastri is a serious contender for the win in Melbourne
From what we have seen so far in pre-season testing in Bahrain, the McLaren MCL39 seems like the car to be in, at least for the first few rounds of the 2025 campaign.
While one needs to take testing results with a pinch of salt, the McLaren duo of Lando Norris and Piastri could actually dominate the season-opening race in Australia with the kind of pace they have shown. Piastri, in particular, will be keen to become the first Australian driver not just to get a podium but to win at his home race.
While Ricciardo managed to do so in 2014, he had to face disqualification later. To date, no driver born Down Under has won a World Championship Grand Prix in Australia ever since it became a part of the F1 calendar in 1985.
Piastri would etch his name in history if he can do so, and he certainly has the car capable of doing so. His task will be a bit complex as the weather forecast shows a possibility of rain on Sunday.
So, if it rains and wet weather experts like Hamilton and Verstappen come to the forefront in changeable conditions, Piastri will have to produce an elite drive to take his maiden home Grand Prix victory.
