Oscar Piastri is one of McLaren’s greatest finds. Touted as F1’s next big thing, the Aussie has already won a race in only his second year in the sport. But as hilarious as his tweet rejecting Alpine’s 2022 contract announcement was, his unexpected switch to McLaren wasn’t all jolly. While his manager, past mentors, and friends celebrated, his mother and half of Australia had mixed feelings. The man he was set to replace in 2023 was his compatriot from ‘Down Under’ and everybody’s favorite – Daniel Ricciardo.

The now-VCARB driver was in his worst career phase at McLaren. While Lando Norris scored 122 points in 2022, Ricciardo only managed a meager 37. The man with the million-watt smile had slowly lost all confidence. On the other end of the spectrum, Oscar Piastri was up and coming at Alpine and learned all the tricks of the trade before jumping ship to McLaren. His mother Nicole, as overjoyed as she was on hearing the news, was suddenly hit by the realization of Ricciardo losing his place in F1.

In her appearance on the Red Flags podcast, Nicole said, “I’m like ‘oh my God McLaren, oh my God’ ’cause that was totally new to me. I did not see that coming, right? And I was like ‘ Oh my God, that’s amazing!’ and then it dawned on me what that meant. I was like ‘Oh no wait, oh my God…’ and he’s (Oscar) nodding, and I said ‘Oh my God, Daniel! I love Daniel!'” She then elaborated on how her Oscar had already felt this rollercoaster of emotions, in his trademark non-expressive way.

Nicole added, “He’s like just deadpan, he’s like ‘yep everybody loves Daniel, yeah. That’s…that’s going to be a problem. He actually said, ‘Of all the F1 drivers ever, Daniel is the worst one to be replaced.'” As host Brian Muller pointed out how poles apart the two Aussies behave, Nicole agreed, saying, “They are polar opposites. They could not be more opposite in terms of personality.” This prompted co-host Matt Elisofon to term Oscar the “Anti-Ricciardo”. “Definitely, in every way,” came Mama Piastri’s reply.

If Red Bull hadn’t given Ricciardo the lease of life in 2023, the Piastri family would still be feeling odd about upsetting many Australians. But all’s well that ends well. While the Honey Badger is still struggling to retain his F1 seat, Oscar is fighting for wins and podiums. Now that you know how his mother felt when McLaren signed him, let’s move on to her reaction to the next big milestone – his first F1 victory.

Oscar Piastri’s mother reacts to his ‘uncomfortable’ maiden win at the Hungarian GP

While Lando Norris waited for 5 years for his first F1 victory, Oscar Piastri did it in his second. However, the level of celebration after matched the wait for each driver. The Briton’s Miami GP victory brought a wave of ecstasy, but the Aussie’s Hungarian GP victory wasn’t as sweet. The Andrea Stella-led McLaren botched up his strategy, leading him to lose his race lead to teammate Norris.

Eventually, team orders came through and he still won, but it didn’t feel as deserved because of the team’s blunder. Speaking about her feelings pre and post-race, Nicole Piastri said, “We kind of knew if he got ahead at the start, it’s hard to overtake (in Hungary). When he got ahead, we were like, ‘Oh, my goodness.'” But she wasn’t convinced yet because a full race was pending to be unfolded. “I know better than anyone that there’s strategy, pitstops. I know it’s not over till you cross the line. But it was just really uncomfortable to watch,” she added, referring to McLaren’s strategic blunder.

Reading or listening to a driver’s family giving their views on such moments is refreshing. Nicole’s statements come as a breath of fresh air in the sea of experts and managers giving their PR-trained answers. With F1 debut and F1 victory ticked off of Oscar’s bucket list, the next milestone is the championship. Winning a title this year isn’t possible for him as he stands 110 points behind leader Max Verstappen. But he’ll turn a new leaf in 2025, which is predicted to witness one of F1’s closest championship battles ever.

Can the Aussie hold his nerve and make his mark at the pinnacle of motorsport? What do you think? Let us know in the comments.