Zak Brown, McLaren’s chief executive, has made an outspoken statement regarding Oscar Piastri after three races in his Formula 1 rookie season.
Brown stated, “All indications point to a world champion in our future.” Oscar has impressed us since we put him in the car. He’s very focused, mature, and very technical.”
Piastri, a 22-year-old Australian, finds inspiration in Brown’s words.
Piastri commented, “It is nice to hear that Zak, the team, and myself believe in me. It also shows that we are not here to play around. That’s exactly what we want to achieve.” “I also want to do that, perhaps even more than Zak.”
Piastri’s junior career was stellar on his path to Formula 1. He finished second in the Formula 4 British Championship in 2017 before winning the Formula Renault Eurocup in 2018. Two years later, he won the Formula 3 and Formula 2 championships.
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He became the reserve driver for Alpine last season because there was no Formula 1 spot available.
Alpine announced that Piastri will be their driver in 2023 after Fernando Alonso had announced last year he was leaving Alpine to join Aston Martin. Piastri denied it.
McLaren claimed to have reached an agreement with McLaren and that McLaren had settled a disagreement in September.
After a tough start to the season for McLaren, Piastri had a successful rookie year.
Piastri only gave himself a grade of “B” for his achievements. He said, “There were just a few mistakes too many for me.”
Piastri remembered an error he made in qualifying for the Spanish Grand Prix. He said: “I was doing a good lap but I braked a bit too late at Turn 10 and missed the apex. Then, I hit a wet area of the track.” It was all over after that. “I was very frustrated with myself.”
“I try to maximize my resources, just like everyone else, but I feel that I missed some opportunities this year.”
In the first half of the season, he has 36 points after finishing fourth at the British Grand Prix in July. He then finished fifth in Hungary and finally second in a sprint race in Belgium six days later.
Andrea Stella, team principal, spoke highly of Piastri despite a crash into a wall during practice for the Dutch Grand Prix.
Stella stated, “First and foremost, you can see the speed.” “Drivers with the potential to be world championship material must have natural speed. We saw this straight away.
Oscar’s head is free of all noise and distractions. He is a student who doesn’t get distracted.
He said: “It’s his natural ability, his capability to learn and he is a good man, with values, ethics, and ethos.” These elements are what make Oscar a world champion.
Mark Webber is Piastri’s manager. He was a former Red Bull racer.
Webber said Piastri is a driver who “sets a very high bar for himself. This has played a major role in how much success he has had up to this stage in his career.”
Webber understands why Brown and Stella have a crush on Piastri.
He said that “people in the know who are watching comment on how unique what they are seeing is.” “That is the most important aspect of this industry: that the right people love what they see.”
Piastri, despite his age, is able to remain levelheaded and not get caught up in the excitement that builds around him.
He said, “The greatest pressure comes from within.” It makes it easier to deal with external pressure, but it is nice that people believe in me.
