Australian driver Oscar Piastri says he has the self-belief to succeed at McLaren and beat teammate Lando Norris, but his main target for 2023 is to set the foundations for his new F1 career.
The 21-year-old will drive alongside the Belgian-British driver Norris for McLaren in 2023, and the Australian spoke to ABC Sport ahead of the new season about his new team, the dramas of 2022, what success looks like, why he didn't watch Drive to Survive, and more.
Asked if he thought he could beat Norris, Piastri was upbeat but emphasised his focus on realistic expectations for his first season at the top level of his sport.
"Yeah, I think so [I can beat him]. I think everyone has to have that self-belief that they can win, or if they're not in a position to win to do the best that they can with what they have," he said.
"There's definitely a steep learning curve ahead of me, into my first year, and obviously Lando's into his fifth year now, but first and foremost for me it's going to be getting back up to speed with no racing for over a year now and we'll see what that holds.
"Putting (points and wins) numbers on my expectations is pretty difficult, especially in F1, I think it will depend where we are as a team… where the car is at.
"For me, a successful year would be me setting the foundations for later in the year and the years to come, hopefully, and doing everything the right way from the beginning, laying the foundations, starting good habits.
"If there's any results that come out of that, then that's a bonus."
Piastri has built a formidable junior record, winning the Formula 2 championship last year, the Formula 3 championship in 2020 and the Formula Renault Eurocup in 2019.
But he admitted it was now up to him to "make his claim" in the next level.
"Everyone in F1 is here because we've had a very successful junior career … that's my credentials to sort of get into the sport, and now I have to make my claim to stay there," he said.
"It's always nice to have those championships [under] your belt and hopefully it translates to success in F1 too."
The successful Netflix show Drive to Survive focused on the storylines of last season in F1, one of which was the struggles of Australia's Daniel Ricciardo at McLaren.
Ricciardo's two seasons were unsuccessful, as he dealt with car troubles and poor performance while teammate Norris went from strength to strength.
There was drama mid-season as Alpine released a statement saying Piastri would be driving for them in 2023, only for Piastri to go public on social media saying he had not signed a contract and would not be driving for the French team.
Reports suggested he had signed a deal with McLaren, but no announcements were made initially.
The case went to court, before McLaren won, allowing them to sign Piastri for 2023, confirming the end of the road for Ricciardo — who has since signed with Red Bull.
"I didn't watch Drive to Survive. Being in the circle, I probably know everything that happens before I need to watch it, so I didn't think I need to watch it to explore what McLaren is like," Piastri said.
Piastri said there had been "not too much" contact between the two but said he was thankful for the way Ricciardo had handled him replacing him at McLaren.
"We got in touch through texts I guess once everything had unfolded last year and he was very supportive of me both personally and on the media front as well, he’s been very supportive of me which I’m very thankful for," he said.
"I’m sure I will see him around in the F1 paddock this year, he’s back working with Red Bull."
Piastri was born in Melbourne in 2001, so the Australian Grand Prix holds a special place for him.
"It's a really exciting race for me (Melbourne GP), it's a home race, my first home race. I grew up 10-15 minutes down the road from Albert Park," he said.
"It's my first race in Australia out of go-karts, it's been a long time since I raced at home. I can't wait for it.
"I was there last year as a reserve driver and it was a pretty electric atmosphere. So knowing that the crowd is going to be there, with me as the home driver now. It's going to be a very special event."
