Written by Carl Hilliard, Edited by Vyas Ponnuri
F1 rookie Oscar Piastri is the latest in a long line to win a Formula 1 Grand Prix, but who exactly is the young Australian? Here is how the number 81 driver rose from a young Formula 3 rookie, to 2024 Formula 1 race winner.

The controversial 2024 Hungarian Grand Prix saw in-form Lando Norris give up his second win to allow his own teammate Oscar Piastri to claim his very first GP victory. Controversy aside, here is a profile outlining the young Australian driver, and how he managed to become a race winner at 23 years old.
Born in Melbourne, Australia in 2001, Piastri’s racing career took off in 2011 with karting, in which he rose through the ranks very quickly. He then began racing in Europe in 2015, leading him up to his 2020 F3 season.
Piastri would go on to win the 2020 F3 world championship, and the 2021 F2 world championship. The Australian eventually graduated into Formula 1 in 2022 as a reserve driver for the Alpine F1 team.
Within his F3 rookie season at Prema Racing, Piastri managed to claim the drivers championship, despite only standing on the podium a surprising six out of eighteen times. The following year in Formula 2 saw Piastri surpass that tally, claiming eleven podiums, five pole positions and six victories. Fittingly enough, the Australian claimed the F2 championship that very year.

With more and more eyes now on the rookie, Alpine F1 pledged opportunities to now reserve driver Piastri, allowing him to drive their F1 car in practice sessions over the course of the 2022 championship season. However, the first piece of controversy emerged, though no fault of Piastri himself.
2022 saw two-time F1 world champion Fernando Alonso depart Alpine, set to join Aston Martin alongside Lance Stroll. Alpine, the very next day, announced that Piastri would be racing with them in F1 for the 2023 season.
However, this proved not to be the case, as the young driver had already signed for McLaren Racing for the next year, sparking debate and controversy all across the board.
Piastri made his full-time F1 debut with McLaren at the 2023 opening round in Bahrain, where poor fortune struck. The number 81 driver was forced to retire from the race following a car issue, with teammate Lando Norris only managing 17th at the chequered flag.

However, things picked up for the F1 rookie over the course of his debut season, with Piastri delivering two podium finishes, and ending up ninth in the drivers championship, with a points tally of 97.
The 2024 season has seen a reinvigorated McLaren, now having arguably the single fastest car on the grid so far. Having a really fast and reliable car in F1 is one thing, but having two drivers capable of delivering results consistently, is another.
Luckily for the Papaya team, both Piastri and Norris have very much been in form over the course of the season so far, with Norris clinching his very first F1 win at the 2024 Miami Grand Prix, the team’s first win since Daniel Ricciardo in Monza 2021.
Piastri claimed his own first win last weekend, at the 2024 Hungarian Grand Prix, which saw himself qualify second on the grid, behind none other than teammate Norris.
The Australian sped ahead in no time, managing the race out front, before a controversial move saw McLaren seemingly favor Norris and his pitstop strategy, allowing the British driver to reclaim the lead of the race in the closing stages.
It was at this point Norris received team orders to allow Piastri through. With Norris giving way, Piastri sailed ahead to claim the chequered flag at the Hungaroring, cementing his very first win in Formula One at the age of 23. The win also meant a third trip to the rostrum in 2024.

With the current pace of McLaren and both drivers, Piastri and Norris, it wouldn’t be amiss for one to assume that there may be plenty more victories to come for the two young drivers. However, only time can tell. McLaren currently sit second in the 2024 standings, with a points haul of 338 thus far, 51 points behind reigning champions Red Bull Racing.
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