Mark Webber labels Oscar Piastri ‘the most sophisticated Australian’ after comparing him to Daniel Ricciardo
McLaren hired Oscar Piastri after terminating Daniel Ricciardo's contract.
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Daniel Ricciardo, Oscar Piastri, Mark Webber
Mark Webber, the former Formula 1 driver and current manager of Oscar Piastri, has compared the young Australian driver to his compatriot and former McLaren driver, Daniel Ricciardo. Webber believes Piastri is a more “sophisticated” driver than Ricciardo and himself.
Webber’s wife Ann made a comment about Piastri, saying that “he’s the most sophisticated Australian that’s gone overseas,” in comparison to both Mark Webber and Daniel Ricciardo. Webber jokingly added that “the sophistication front of Daniel and I is [a] very, very low bar, so I don’t think there’s any comparisons between myself and Oscar.”
Oscar Piastri made his F1 debut this year, filling in for Ricciardo with the McLaren team. Ricciardo struggled to adapt to a vehicle that did not fit his driving style throughout his time with the team. Despite a slow season, the Australian guided the team to victory and a second-place finish at Monza in 2021. The squad had big hopes for him in 2022, but they did not materialise. Ricciardo was thoroughly trounced by Norris in qualifying in 2022, out-qualifying him mere two races out of 22 and finishing 82 points behind the Brit in the standings. Due to his poor performance, the team was forced to terminate his contract early and bring in Piastri, who had impressed with back-to-back feeder series victories.
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Mark Webber reflects on the generation gap in F1
Webber acknowledges that there is a generation gap between his time in F1 and Piastri’s debut, but he is excited to see how the sport has progressed. “It just shows you the generation gap,” the former F1 driver added.
“I think that’s the interesting thing. When you’re talking to Oscar about certain things, it’s just like, some of it’s relevant of course, some of it’s not,” he said. “The level of professionalism and detail they have now, and all the resources they have… The sport just continues to move on, which is great to watch,” Webber added.
While McLaren has struggled with a slow start to the 2023 season due to their draggy car, Piastri has shown his true potential, out-qualifying Norris in just the second round of the season. Ricciardo now serves as a third driver at his previous shelter, Red Bull. As the season progresses, all eyes will be on Piastri to see if he can live up to the hype and lead McLaren to further success.
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Rohit Bhaskar
(727 Articles Published)