Bayside Melbourne product Oscar Piastri has shown the maturity of a future Formula 1 champion, turning his Albert Park heartbreak into grand prix glory in Shanghai just seven days later.
Starting on pole for the first time in his F1 career, the 23-year-old Piastri was typically cool, calm and collected all race as he kept the best in the business at bay for 56 blistering laps of the Chinese Grand Prix to win his third main race in world motor sport’s premier class.
“It’s been an incredible weekend from start to finish,” Piastri said on Sky after the race, adding that he hoped this victory marked the start of his title charge after finishing ninth in Melbourne.
“[The car was] pretty mega the whole time, I think, today.
“I’m just proud of the whole weekend – this is what I feel like I deserve from last week.
“I’m extremely happy.”
Mercedes’ George Russell, Red Bull’s four-time reigning world champion Max Verstappen, and Piastri’s own McLaren teammate Lando Narris – who saluted in Melbourne seven days prior – all pushed Piastri to the brink, but he was unflinching.
Though struggling with wheelspin off the start line at the end of the monstrous Shanghai straight, Piastri kept Russell behind him going into turn one and refused to look back – despite a few hair-raising moments when it came to tyre strategy.
Piastri pitted early from the lead and then stayed on his hard tyres, like the bulk of the field, for the remainder of the race in a true battle of attrition.
“The hard was a much better tyre than everyone expected, I think,” Piastri said of what was essentially a wire-to-wire win.
“To go all the way to the end like that was a bit of a surprise, but a happy surprise.”
Piastri – who after the race said his heritage is part-Chinese, to the roar of the crowd – held his nerve as Norris pushed in second, both of them trying desperately to keep the “dragster” (in the words of Ferrari racer Charles Leclerc) of Russell’s Mercedes behind them.
For his part, Norris congratulated Piastri for his win.
“Turn one went to plan, but then George [Russell] got me in the pit stops and I was a little bit nervous because our pace was a lot better in the second stint … it was a tough race, just with the management [of it],” Norris said.
“I don’t think many people expected a one-stop today. Oscar drove well, he was quick the whole race – I tried to get close, but in the end I just couldn’t.”
Norris was asked if he could have fought Piastri for the win, to which he replied: “It doesn’t matter now really, does it? He deserved the win, and he drove very well all weekend.”
Piastri had finished second in the sprint race on Saturday before setting two lap times good enough for pole position in claiming the top spot on the grid for the first time in his career.
There’d be no repeat of Albert Park, where Piastri slid off on lap 44 while battling Norris for the lead. This was redemption.
Piastri summed it up best following the win: “The car was very lovely ... great team effort. That is one satisfying weekend,” he said at his understated best over the radio.
Norris tried everything to push Piastri to the brink again, but this time around the Australian had the race lead to his advantage – setting the race pace, and looking after his tyres after what initially loomed as an action-packed two-or-three-stop race. Norris, by contrast, struggled with his brakes in the race’s closing stages.