McLaren explains how Oscar Piastri ‘overtaking a Ferrari’ in Miami gave Lando Norris the belief to secure a triumphant victory

Lando Norris won the Miami GP by a margin of over seven seconds!

McLaren explains how Oscar Piastri ‘overtaking a Ferrari’ in Miami gave Lando Norris the belief to secure a triumphant victory

Oscar Piastri and Lando Norris (Via: Imago)

Lando Norris stole the show at the 2024 Miami GP with his sensational win over Red Bulls’ Max Verstappen. The former operated at a very high level but amidst the hype around the Brit, McLaren has taken the time to applaud its second driver, Oscar Piastri.

The Australian was on it from the get-go during the 57-lap event and on lap four, even managed to get the better of Ferrari’s Charles Leclerc. McLaren boss, Andrea Stella feels that this was the moment when Lando Norris felt he could do something special at the event.

YouTube video

When Max Verstappen came into the pits on lap 24, Piastri took the lead and after a few more laps, a sudden safety car did the trick for Norris to come out leading the race on fresh tires.

FS Video
His performance in the race was again very strong. Lando said something really nice before; he said by looking at Oscar overtaking a Ferrari, he got like, wow, we are actually there. So, it was a realization for Lando himself. And Oscar could keep a strong pace in the first stint.
Andrea Stella said in an interview with Speedcafe

Looking at the reaction of the McLaren team principal, it is quite clear that he feels his young Australian driver played a huge role in helping Lando Norris secure the win in Miami. On the back of the upgrades on the Brit’s MCL38, the car worked really well around the Miami street circuit.

Oscar Piastri did not have all the upgrades on his MCL38 in Miami

While Andrea Stella has left no stone unturned in applauding Oscar Piastri, the praise on him is much deserved. Especially considering that he was not running the full upgrade package that Norris had underneath him in Miami.

Oscar Piastri
Oscar Piastri (via IMAGO)

Piastri out-qualified his more experienced teammate during the Miami GP quali session.

We sort of knew already how fast he is on a single lap. Considering that he didn't have the full package – and let me pay proper credit to Oscar, the gap he had to Lando in qualifying is smaller than the difference of the package he had.
Andrea Stella said in the same interview

Oscar Piastri since making his F1 debut, has proven very strong. He has regularly been able to challenge his more experienced teammate and considering this, the driver battle at McLaren will be a fascinating watch this year. Piastri has all the skills in his arsenal to get the better of Norris by the time December rolls around.

In case you missed it: