McLaren boss sings praises of Oscar Piastri after a string of impressive performances in his rookie F1 season so far

McLaren team principal Andrea Stella recently praised rookie Oscar Piastri for his performances in the last few races.

The British team has suddenly found great pace after bringing new upgrade packages to the 2023 F1 Austrian GP. Since then, both Lando Norris and Oscar Piastri have been fighting for podium finishes.

Speaking to Sky Sports, Stella initially stated how lucky McLaren is to have two extremely talented drivers. He also praised Oscar Piastri for how brilliantly he has been performing on the track, especially when considering that it is his first year in F1.

The McLaren team principal said:

“We are first of all very happy to have Lando and Oscar in our team, we think they are incredible prospects for the future. Lando, I think is not a prospect, he is an established top driver. For us being in this journey with Oscar, it makes it even more exciting, because it was very clear right from the start – the level of talent.”

He added:

“Even the analytical behavior, looking at things, trying to learn, and at the same time always remaining very calm. He is able to absorb things, execute things, always staying very calm, which I think is a strong point of Oscar.”

It is clear that the young Australian is settling in well in F1 and will soon start bagging podiums and even race wins if McLaren keeps improving their car. However, he will also face fierce competition from his more experienced teammate Lando Norris.

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Oscar Piastri expressed how he felt to lead his first few laps in F1

The McLaren rookie got his first taste of what it feels like to lead a few laps in an F1 car at the 2023 F1 Belgian GP sprint race. He overtook Max Verstappen and led the entire pack through a damp Spa-Francorchamps.

Though he was eventually overtaken by Verstappen, Piastri was still delighted to finish second in the sprint race. In the post-race interview in the parc-ferme, he said:

"Very very happy, we tried out best. We boxed when the safety came in, lead a few laps... tried my best but we were no match for Max [Verstappen]. Yeah, nice to be up there in P2, apart from Max our pace was really strong."

"Full credit to the team again, the last three weekends we've had it's been pretty special compared to where we have been. I can't thank them enough for the car."

The Belgian GP race weekend was a rollercoaster for Oscar Piastri, as the young rookie finished second in the sprint race but had to retire from the main race on Sunday. He was only able to bag seven points from the weekend at Spa.