Oscar Piastri has been a serial winner, given the Australian won the championship in the last three junior categories he participated in consecutive seasons. As a result, Piastri has carried the reputation of being a future world champion. Before McLaren came calling, he was on the sidelines for almost 15 months after his 2021 F2 championship. However, his manager, Mark Webber highlighted how that did not slow him down one bit.
Singing Piastri’s praises, Webber said on the Formula for Success podcast, “Oscar through his junior categories has been exceptional. He’s entering to F1 with a 15-month break. He didn’t bloody race for a long time, which was, you know, tough for any racing driver.”
“So I think last year entering Formula One for him was, it’s a big step. But time and time again, he has shown that he’s ready to race at the front against the big guys. And he’s fine for that. Respectful, hard, clean.”
Mark Webber: “His [Oscar’s] entry into F1 with a 15-month break… he didn’t bloody race for a long time which was tough for any racing driver. […] But time and time again, he’s shown that he’s ready to race at the front against the big guys.”
[via @F1ForSuccess] pic.twitter.com/UEhPTpBP7O
— did oscar score points in f1 today? (@oscarpiastri81) September 5, 2024
In his rookie season, Piastri was up there fighting for podiums once McLaren’s upgrades came through. His performance was so good it earned him a contract extension reportedly till 2026. The 23-year-old adapted to F1’s demands within no time. While he made a few mistakes in 2023, it seems he has ironed those out in the current campaign.
Thanks to Piastri’s quick learning, McLaren has become a force to be reckoned with. The Woking outfit is comfortably on course to take the lead in the constructors’ championship. The Aussie only has a 20-point deficit to P3 in the drivers’ championship as well. Alongside Lando Norris, he has formed a formidable partnership, and even Max Verstappen believes the same.
Verstappen claims Norris and Piastri are the toughest rival pairing in F1
Thanks to their consistent effort, the McLaren men have put the team in a position to clinch the 2024 championship. Norris is also in the hunt for the driver’s championship title. Albeit a little far-fetched, the Briton is doing everything in his power to steal the title from the reigning champion.
Last year, Verstappen perhaps saw this challenge coming as he deemed the McLaren pairing as the toughest rival team pairing. Per SpeedCafe, he said at the Qatar GP, “I do think that as a team they are probably the most consistent, compared to the others behind us. I do think they have the best driver line-up out of all of them, they are operating really well.”
The Dutchman is also looking forward to how and where everyone stands at the start of the 2025 season. For now, it seems the race for the championship is slipping away from him and Red Bull due to McLaren’s team effort.
