Oscar Piastri is one of the biggest talents in F1 today, having created a name for himself by winning both the F3 and F2 world championships. Currently driving for McLaren, his engineers from his junior days feel that he is the biggest talent in F1 since Max Verstappen. Sky Sports analyst Karun Chandhok revealed what Piastri’s former engineers thought about his talent in a recent interview ahead of the Monaco GP.
Piastri won the 2021 F2 championship in dominant fashion. After his win, fans wanted him to join F1 immediately, but there wasn’t a place for him on the grid. He had to wait for his chance, and when McLaren let Daniel Ricciardo go in 2022, they decided to appoint Piastri for this season.
So far, McLaren has been subpar, with the car not strong enough to compete at the front. Piastri’s abilities haven’t been on full display as a result, but in terms of talent, no one can question the potential. In the interview ahead of this weekend’s race in Monaco, Chandhok revealed an interesting conversation he had with Piastri’s former engineers.
Oscar Piastri is better than Charles Leclerc at Prema
Leclerc first rose to stardom in the junior circuit when he was driving for Prema, and guided the Italian team to the F2 championship win 2017. He was regarded as the best driver to ever drive for them and soon became Ferrari’s poster boy- the man who was going to bring title glory back to Maranello.
Chandhok, however, reveals that the same Prema engineers told him that Piastri performed better with Prema than Leclerc did.
“I spoke to Oscar’s engineers at Prema,” said Chandhok. “They went to the point of saying he was better than Leclerc when they had Leclerc in Prema. They said: you know, he was genuinely the best young talent to come through junior formula since Max Verstappen”
Being compared to Max Verstappen currently, is a huge feat for any F1 driver. The Dutchman is the most dominant star in the sport at the moment, and is the favorite to win the world championship for a third consecutive year.
How long until Piastri reaches Max Verstappen’s level?
At the moment, Verstappen is close to being untouchable in F1. A lot of this is down to Red Bull dominance in Formula 1, with no team able to match their performance at the moment. Currently, he is at the top of the standings, 14 points clear of his teammate Sergio Perez.
Piastri meanwhile, is struggling to get into the points with McLaren. He has just four points to his name and is 14th in the standings. Talent wise, if the Prema drivers are right, Piastri may be at Verstappen’s level. However, to reach the Dutchman’s level, Piastri needs to prove his abilities with a top team that can give him a car to win races.
