Piastri Speaks On His Rookie Season Privilege That Some Drivers Don't Get In Whole F1 Career

Saturday, 02 December 2023 at 20:00

Australian F1 driver Oscar Piastri recently reflected on the great privilege he has had during his first-ever season in Formula One.

Oscar Piastri signed an unexpected deal with McLaren before the 2023 season to replace Daniel Ricciardo, who did not perform up to the high standard his teammate Lando Norris set.

While the start of the 2023 season was very messy for McLaren, the team brought very strong upgrades to their cars and made one of the biggest development steps forward that F1 has seen in the last two seasons.

Oscar Piastri has been able to utilize the competitive car he has been given and collected 97 points in total, coming close to breaking Lewis Hamilton's record for most points collected in a rookie season.

On the other hand, the 22-year-old is aware it would not have been possible without the car he has been given and he acknowledged the fact when he told the media:

“"For me, it's really a privilege to be fighting at the front so early in my career. There are people that go their whole F1 career that don't have the opportunity that I've had in 22 races."”

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Piastri is bound to race for McLaren until the end of 2026. His pace seemed quite promising towards the end of this season, so it seems like he might have a chance to compete for podiums again in the upcoming years.

“"So I'm very, very grateful for that. And I'm looking forward to plenty more years to come where hopefully we can do that more often. It's definitely been a great season."”

To put things in perspective, a driver like Nico Hulkenberg has not been fortunate enough throughout his more than 200-race-long career to achieve a podium. Piastri achieved two Grand Prix podiums and one Sprint Race victory. The Australian added:

“"A lot of highlights that I wouldn't have been able to do without the team improving the car the way we did. So I have to give a lot of credit to them. But also, I guess to pat myself on the back, I had to deliver in those moments too."”