“He is proven winning material” - McLaren boss convinced of his driver’s high potential

McLaren team boss Andrea Stella has praised rookie driver Oscar Piastri and believes that his past results are proof that he can do well in Formula 1.

Piastri was part of some unforeseen drama last year when former employer Alpine and McLaren battled for his signature. It ended with the Australian joining McLaren as Daniel Ricciardo's replacement.

The 21-year-old has achieved success in almost every competition he has participated in over the years. He had his first taste of single-seater competition as a 15-year-old, where he registered two podium finishes in F4 UAE. He was then the British F4 runner-up, Formula Renault champion, Formula 3 champion, and, most recently, the Formula 2 champion.

Stella has been impressed by what he has seen from Piastri in his short time with the team. He told the official F1 website:

“Oscar is new to F1 but he is proven winning material in junior categories. He has been doing very well so far – we are very pleased. The level of talent, the level of progress we have seen day by day, during testing, is very encouraging, and kind of confirms that he is a strong prospect for the future.”

Shedding light on what's most impressive about Piastri, Stella said:

“What impresses us is his awareness of his opportunities while driving. He could come back and make comments like, ‘I think I braked a little too early in corner one, I didn’t go on the throttle early enough in four’. Then you look at the data and it is exactly it.”

He added:

“Then he goes out for the second run and he cashes in on these opportunities. For me, this is a definition of talent [and] we see a lot of it. We are also, like I said before, pleased with the improvement we have seen day by day.”

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McLaren expected to hire key Ferrari staff: Reports

Multiple reports from the Italian media suggest that David Sanchez, the head of vehicle concept at Ferrari, has resigned from his position with the Scuderia. He has reportedly been approached by a team based in the UK - said to be McLaren - and has decided to take up the offer.

Sanchez has been a part of the Ferrari team since 2012. He worked his way up from the aerodynamics department before being promoted to his most recent role overseeing the aerodynamic concepts of the team's F1-75 and SF-23.

The Frenchman is expected to join McLaren, a team who are reportedly in the process of finishing their new wind tunnel and upgrading the infrastructure at their factory.