How Piastri has learned from Verstappen in quest for title
F1 News
Oscar Piastri believes Max Verstappen's example from the previous season is one he should follow when the Australian was asked about his chances for the drivers' title.
Lando Norris entered as the betting odds favourite this season but teammate Piastri is also considered a contender in the same machinery, especially after his victory in Shanghai. The Australian is 10 points behind Norris after two rounds have been completed.
"I think it's very, very early, clearly. But I think no matter how short or long the championship is, you need to maximise the car that you have every race," Piastri began when asked about his chances for won winning it all this year
Piastri takes example of Verstappen
Towards the beginning of the previous season, Red Bull still had an advantage. However, rivals managed to catch up to the Milton Keynes-based outfit and McLaren and Ferrari finished ahead in the constructors' standings. Still, Verstappen managed to achieve his fourth world title.
"I think we saw last year that Verstappen was able to win the championship by capitalising on the car he had in the first part of the year. And he obviously did a good job through the rest of the year as well, but he built the gap when he had the ability to build the gap. And I think that’s an important thing at the moment as well, because you never know when someone’s going to find some speed with an upgrade or find something in how they operate the car," he explained.
The McLaren driver added he is not yet focusing on the standings as a whole: "As much of a cliché as it is, it’s a cliché for a reason, and I’m focusing on one weekend at a time because ultimately that is how you win a championship: by getting the most out of every weekend."
This article was written in collaboration with Kimberley Hoefnagel
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