Oscar Piastri Gives Lando Norris a Special Shoutout as “Benchmark” Craft Hailed as Driving Force

Do you remember the scene in the McLaren when Lewis Hamilton faced off against two-time champion Fernando Alonso? The way Hamilton drove against the Spanish champion, who has already set a “benchmark” for driving competence, demonstrated that the Briton had something. This is precisely what the Australian rookie Oscar Piastri appears to twin, as seen after an outstanding effort at the Belgian GP sprint. However, for making his rookie career start look so promising, the Melburnian hails his teammate Lando Norris.

Oscar Piastri who continued to impress the experts and the F1 community from the past two races got a hold on the podium. And his recent exploits aren’t shocking since following the last two races where at the British GP he finished P4, the Hungarian Grand (P5) saw him eventually ending at P5. Nevertheless, more than anyone else in the McLaren camp, it was Lando Norris who expressed satisfaction with the rookie’s performance, contrasting it with that of his former teammate Daniel Ricciardo and claiming that the younger Australian “pushed him harder” than the other. Indicating that the set “Benchmark” by him might be a motivating factor for Piastri to push this harder.

Oscar Piastri eventually earned a P2 and finished only behind the defending champion Max Verstappen after nearly missing the pole in the sprint shootout by 0.011 seconds. Witnessing a rookie perform in such a way, the first question that comes to mind is undoubtedly who inspired him to grow so quickly after only 11 races in his Formula 1 career. The 22-year-old who created history by taking the lead for a short period credited Lando Norris in his remarks.

He said, “I’m happy with where I’m at driving-wise, there’s still a lot to improve, a lot to learn.” Later while pointing out the genuine reason behind attributing Norris, Piastri added, “I’ve got a very strong teammate to learn from who just by being a benchmark is a big help.” 

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The rookie Australian’s efforts have astounded the entire F1 community and the man who in his younger years put on a similar display is now been complimentary about the rookie’s abilities. Who is that young man?

Double champion Max Verstappen hail rookie Oscar Piastri’s efforts in the Sprint

As the youngest driver to ever make an impact in this fierce competition, Max Verstappen made his Formula 1 debut in 2015 when he was just 17 years old.

However, a young man who faced up against some of this sport’s beasts displayed tenacity and resilience to survive. When the Dutchman saw Piastri leading the race, he thought back to when he was younger and praised Australia’s budding star.

While having the chat with the media including the ones from Planet F1, the double champion who is now cruising to his third championship after winning the consecutive Sprint races said, “I mean, I’ve been in that position as well, where the younger guy comes in. It’s nice and it’s great and Oscar’s having a very strong season in general. But I think also this weekend, he has been really on it. So it’s always nice to, for the first time, basically race him.”

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

Given that Verstappen will start the main GP race behind Oscar Piastri due to the 5-place grid penalty, Do you believe we will again see some intense clashes between the two “young guns?”