Oscar Piastri

For a driver yet to turn his first competitive wheel in a Formula 1 car, Oscar Piastri’s decorated - albeit complicated - route to the premier ranks has certainly attracted more headlines than the average debutant.

Following in the footsteps of Lewis Hamilton, Kevin Magnussen and Lando Norris by making his F1 debut with McLaren, the build up to Piastri’s much anticipated premiere was both belated and been fraught with controversy.

Seemingly set on a fast track towards F1 after landing a hat-trick of feeder category titles - Formula Renault Eurocup, F3 and F2 - consecutively between 2019 and 2021, Piastri was hotly tipped to be promoted to an Alpine seat for 2022, courtesy of his prominent role within its (formerly Renault-endorsed) driver academy.

However, Alpine’s decision to retain Esteban Ocon and Fernando Alonso consigned Piastri to the sidelines for 2022, prompting him to seek alternative options for an F1 seat the following season.

His patience looked to be rewarded when Daniel Ricciardo’s seat at McLaren became available, Piastri first in line to begin talks and negotiate a deal for the 2023 F1 season.

Alpine - having been caught unawares by Alonso’s shock Aston Martin deal - quickly reacted in an effort to block Piastri’s move to McLaren by taking up an option in his contract in order to keep him in the team.

Upon announcing a deal to the media, Piastri quickly pledged allegiance to McLaren and attempted to distance himself from Alpine, going on to claim that the news was made public before he had even been consulted on the deal.

With McLaren and Alpine laying claim to the driver’s services for 2023, it led to a hearing at the Contract Recognition Board (CRB) to settle the dispute. The board would ultimately rule in favour of McLaren, releasing Piastri to begin preparations for his rookie campaign alongside Norris.

2023 

McLaren Racing 

9th - 97 points  

Piastri made one of the most eagerly-anticipated debuts in F1 history after his contract saga in 2022, which followed a domination period of the junior formulas. However, his F1 career did not have a great start with zero points in the opening two grands prix as McLaren struggled for pace having missed its development targets for 2023.  

The Australian then scored his first set of F1 points with eighth at his home race in Melbourne, yet what followed was just one more top 10 finish in the next five rounds. But things suddenly changed for Piastri mid-season as McLaren fitted extensive upgrades which had the British outfit fighting towards the front. 

Piastri came fourth in Silverstone with his newly-upgraded car before another top five finish at the following race in Hungary. That was just a sign of things to come as Piastri then scored 63 points after the summer break which included podiums in Japan and Qatar, while the latter also featured a maiden sprint race victory for the young rookie. 

So by this point, Piastri’s early season results had become a distant memory while he was impressively close to team-mate Lando Norris having out-qualified him for five of the final 10 races. It all led to Piastri finishing ninth in the championship with some calling it the best rookie season since Lewis Hamilton in 2007. 

Oscar Piastri Racing Record