Oscar Piastri returns to the Melbourne GP with renewed confidence and a points-scoring McLaren, aiming for a home crowd triumph.
Oscar Piastri is looking forward to returning to Melbourne under more favorable circumstances than those he faced when he made his debut there last year. The McLaren F1 driver has scored points and feels more confident in achieving a strong result in front of his home crowd.
“There will be several differences in Melbourne this year,” Piastri noted. “I had already raced there in 2023, but it was my first time as a driver. The atmosphere is quite different when you’re somewhat the local hope.”
“At the time, I tried not to think too much about it. However, I hadn’t scored any points in F1 yet. Leaving Melbourne, I felt relieved to have scored points, even if luck played a part.”
The Melbourne race is close to home for him, as he grew up near Albert Park: “This year, I’m sure I’ll feel better having established myself a bit more, and I hope our car will be more competitive than it was 12 months ago. The atmosphere will be very different.”
“I live 10 minutes from Albert Park – or I lived 10 minutes away – but 2023 was my first race around there. So, I’ve gained some experience with the circuit and the weekend as a whole, and I hope we can come back with a faster car and fight for some extra points.”
What does he expect for this home weekend in terms of results?
“Being realistic, yes, fighting to be the third fastest team is probably where we stand right now. I think we’ve made a step closer to Ferrari, at least in Saudi Arabia, but we’re still… We’re not there yet.”
“So, I think the battle is probably against Mercedes at the moment for us. I hope we can start to challenge a bit more later in the year, but for now, yes, I think even though I don’t want to dampen people’s hopes back home, it will take more to hope for better than 5th on merit. A bit of luck, yes.”
Piastri Eyes Strong Return to Melbourne GP. Piastri Eyes Strong Return to Melbourne GP
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