Oscar Piastri had a glistening racing reputation when he joined McLaren for the 2023 F1 season. The 22-year-old Australian was fresh off winning the Formula Renault Eurocup, Formula 3 and Formula 2 championships—consecutively, in his rookie seasons, the first driver to ever accomplish this. When he joined F1, the pressure was on, and it’s safe to say he’s delivered.
Last time out, in Qatar, Piastri had the best weekend of his F1 career to date. He took the Sprint Shootout pole in a stunning performance and was able to keep three-time champion Max Verstappen at bay to achieve his and the team’s first Sprint victory. In fact, it was the team’s second win in 11 years, with the first being at the 2021 Italian Grand Prix.
Not only was he quick in the Sprint, but the McLaren driver was also able to collect second place the following day and earned himself two consecutive podium finishes in Japan and Qatar. As F1 heads to Austin this weekend, Piastri sat down to talk about his incredible rookie season, his family, his race-day superstitions and more.
