Oscar Piastri has been having a very impressive rookie season with McLaren, leading some to claim that Lando Norris should be concerned.
Piastri’s form has been compared by some to that of Lewis Hamilton’s 2007 run, when the then 22-year-old placed second in the world championship.
The Australian has been on a rapid rise since his 2019 Formula Renault Eurocup win, followed immediately by his Formula 3 title win in 2020.
There is no question that Piastri has a bright future ahead of him, which is thrilling for fans, but may not get the same joyous reaction from fellow racers.
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Particularly Norris, who has been the undisputed king of McLaren for about two years now.
He may be feeling some threat to his throne coming from Piastri.
Norris currently ranks number 8 in the Driver Standings, but Piastri is not far off his tail at 11th place.
While Norris has been ahead of Piastri in 10 out of the last 12 races, it is Piastri’s exponential improvement that may prove worrying for the Brit.
Piastri is aware of this internal competition, and has shared: “I don’t want to just be close to Lando, of course, I want to try and beat him.
“It’s been nice to be so close. But, until you’re beating your teammate, you’re always going to feel like there’s more to come.”
Piastri’s contract with McLaren will expire at the end of 2024, while Norris’s will carry on for at least another season after that.
As McLaren currently seems to be in a bit of a slump, Piastri may choose to move on to a higher-ranked team.
Norris previously had talks with Red Bull, who has been a consistent chart-topper since 2021, but chose to stay loyal to McLaren.
The British driver may live to regret that decision, as Piastri now has a prime position to first dominate McLaren standings, and then move on to a better team.
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The Australian, however, has been smooth and methodical all through his rookie year and aims to retain that approach.
If he continues in his current projection, there is no telling how far Piastri can go.
Some say he has the talent to topple Norris in the short term – and maybe even Max Verstappen sometime in the future.