F1 team boss reveals KEY Oscar Piastri turning point

Oscar Piastri, McLaren, Bahrain, 2024 — Photo: © IMAGO

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F1 team boss reveals KEY Piastri turning point

The Australian is no longer a rookie

Tyler Rowlinson

Saturday 23 March 2024 14:57

McLaren CEO Zak Brown is full of praise for driver Oscar Piastri, and his progress in Formula 1.

Entering the sport as a rookie last season, the Aussie endured a difficult start to the season as he and team-mate Lando Norris battled with an underdeveloped car.

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But heading into his home grand prix in Melbourne, Piastri is in a much stronger position than 2023, currently sitting fifth in the standings with 16 points, ahead of Norris.

The 22-year-old has taken the fight to his team-mate so far this season, and speaking with the media in Australia, team boss Brown – who recently signed a new contract to keep him as McLaren CEO until 2030 – said that Piastri had lost his ‘rookie stripes’.

Oscar Piastri sits P5 in the championship standings

The Aussie is ahead of team-mate Lando Norris

Brown praises 'mature' Piastri

"He continues to get faster and faster,” Brown said. “Obviously, we're two races in, but what we're seeing is he's got his rookie stripes off now. And so on Fridays he gets on the pace right away.

“He doesn't really make mistakes. He's extremely fast. I think for the first two races of the year, it's the closest driver pairing in the field.

“And that's exactly what you want as a team. And I think they're pushing each other, they're pushing the team. So I'm very excited about our driver line-up for the foreseeable future."

McLaren failed to score a point in the opening two rounds of 2023, and sat bottom of the constructors’ standings when they came to Melbourne last year. This season is a different story, with the team as high as third in the early championship standings.

Zak Brown claims McLaren have the closest driver pairing

“Last year was also a very difficult start to the year,” Brown added.

“So in addition, add in the pressure of being a rookie and then coming to your first home race and you're also in a race car that's not that strong.

“So I think he's now had a year under his belt, he knows what to expect. He's got a much better race car that he's sitting in, and so he's definitely enjoying it. And nice to see him maturing.

“He's already a mature young man, but you can definitely see a year on he's got a higher level of confidence because he knows what to expect. And I think that'll just drive even better performance with the helmet on.”

McLaren Formula 1 Lando Norris Oscar Piastri Zak Brown Melbourne