The Australian GP was where it all went wrong for Sergio Perez in the RB19. Until that weekend, he was going neck-to-neck with Max Verstappen for the title, but a bad run of form that started in Melbourne hasn’t ended yet, but his title hopes sure have. It began when he crashed out of the first part of qualifying and immediately lashed out at his team for not fixing a problem he had in FP3. But what was the problem? According to Red Bull, there was none. 

But if there was no problem, why did Perez say there was? After qualifying, there were speculations that he was dishonest just to cover up his error. The pressure of the fight against Verstappen and the tension between the two might’ve gotten to him, which led him to crash. While there were speculations about Checo’s dishonesty, there were also talks that Red Bull sabotaged him to favor Max in the title fight. What happened behind the scenes to sort out the issue, no one will ever know. But everyone does know this: Perez’s seat at Red Bull is in danger. His bad form that began at the Australian GP wasn’t the only thing born in Melbourne, though. Turns out, a Melbourne-born, human-sized form could replace him.

Is Oscar Piastri a good fit to replace Sergio Perez at Red Bull?

Alpine’s loss was McLaren’s gain. While Alpine lost a two-time world champion in Fernando Alonso and an up-and-coming talent in Oscar Piastri within a month, McLaren is making the most out of having the Australian in Woking. What making the most of it means is McLaren has given him a below-average package, and Piastri is doing his best to maximize its potential.

The Papaya team has probably the sixth or seventh-best car on the grid this season, and with Lando Norris dragging the car to positions higher than its punching weight, Piastri is giving him a run for his money. And that talent is why F1 journalist Peter Windsor thinks Oscar would do well at Red Bull.

In a YouTube Live on his channel, Windsor mentioned someone asking him what his perfect team would look like. He said it would be Leclerc and Norris. But he added, “I was just opening the door possibly to [Oscar] Piastri because he does look good. And, unlike what I expected, he’s very calm and laconic. I really like that about a racing driver, and he keeps his mouth shut most of the time, which is great.”

Piastri has kept up to speed with Norris in almost every race weekend and has made just one error so far, which has led Windsor to believe he might be a good fit at Red Bull. “Piastri, I think, would do a pretty good job at Red Bull as well.” But as much as Oscar would like to have a competitive car under him in the future, at the moment, he’s just excited about what’s to come at McLaren in the coming weeks

Read More: Despite Daniel Ricciardo Nurturing “Fairytale” Dreams, Max Verstappen’s Preference for a Rival Dubbed Better Alternative 

Oscar Piastri is excited about McLaren’s upgrades

The MCL60 hasn’t been up to the mark so far this season. Sitting in P6 in the championship, the Woking team is competing against Alpine for P5. But recently, Alpine has looked much faster than McLaren. Team principal Andrea Stella thinks that will change in the coming weeks because McLaren is set to bring a significant overhaul of upgrades to the Austrian, British, and Hungarian GP. And according to Stella, these will help the team bridge the gap to the front.

The first round of upgrades will be introduced this weekend in Austria. While talking about them, Piastri said, “I’m excited for what’s to come in the future, and the not-too-distant future now, which is nice.” The Red Bull Ring is a track McLaren has done well at, and considering it’s a sprint weekend, there are more points up for grabs. Piastri and McLaren will hope the upgrades work how they expect to maximize their chances of closing the gap.

Is Oscar Piastri a good fit to replace Sergio Perez at Red Bull? And can he beat Lando Norris in McLaren this season?

WATCH THIS STORY | Is Oscar Piastri Already Justifying His Talent By Performing Better Than Daniel Ricciardo at McLaren?