Aussie F1 star's bold McLaren prediction

1 year ago 58

Australia's Oscar Piastri says helium tin bushed highly-rated teammate Lando Norris erstwhile the 2 spell head-to-head astatine McLaren this season.

Piastri volition marque his Formula 1 debut successful Bahrain successful March aft replacing chap Australian Daniel Ricciardo.

Norris is regarded arsenic a imaginable satellite champion successful the close car, but speaking to the ABC, Piastri says he's assured of matching his British teammate, contempt the 21-year-old having spent past play connected the sidelines arsenic Alpine and McLaren fought for his services.

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"Yeah, I deliberation truthful [I tin bushed him]," Piastri said.

"I deliberation everyone has to person that self-belief that they tin win, oregon if they're not successful a presumption to triumph to bash the champion that they tin with what they have.

"There's decidedly a steep learning curve up of me, into my archetypal year, and evidently Lando's into his 5th twelvemonth now, but archetypal and foremost for maine it's going to beryllium getting backmost up to velocity with nary racing for implicit a twelvemonth present and we'll spot what that holds.

"For me, a palmy twelvemonth would beryllium maine mounting the foundations for aboriginal successful the twelvemonth and the years to come, hopefully, and doing everything the close mode from the beginning, laying the foundations, starting bully habits.

"If there's immoderate results that travel retired of that, past that's a bonus."

Piastri arrives successful Formula 1 having won 3 consecutive championships, emulating George Russell and Charles Leclerc successful claiming the F3 and F2 titles arsenic a rookie.

But Piastri isn't getting carried distant by his occurrence to date.

"Everyone successful F1 is present due to the fact that we've had a precise palmy inferior vocation … that's my credentials to benignant of get into the sport, and present I person to marque my assertion to enactment there," helium said.

"It's ever bully to person those championships [under] your loop and hopefully it translates to occurrence successful F1 too."

Piastri has really ne'er raced a car successful Australia, having moved overseas arsenic a teen to contention successful Europe portion helium was inactive successful karts.

It's wherefore April's Australian Grand Prix volition beryllium peculiarly special.

"It's a truly breathtaking contention for me, it's a location race, my archetypal location race. I grew up 10-15 minutes down the roadworthy from Albert Park," helium said.

"It's my archetypal contention successful Australia retired of go-karts, it's been a agelong clip since I raced astatine home. I can't hold for it.

"I was determination past twelvemonth arsenic a reserve operator and it was a beauteous electrical atmosphere. So knowing that the assemblage is going to beryllium there, with maine arsenic the location operator now. It's going to beryllium a precise peculiar event."

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