Martin Brundle shares what impressed him about McLaren driver Oscar Piastri
McLaren driver Oscar Piastri capped off a fantastic rookie season in Formula 1 with another strong performance in Abu Dhabi according to Martin Brundle.
The young Australian came home in sixth place and had some fascinating battles during the Grand Prix.
Martin Brundle and David Croft were commentating on the race and enjoyed the youngster’s final outing as a rookie.
It’s been hard to find anything negative to say about Oscar Piastri during his first season as a Formula 1 driver.
He wasn’t to blame for McLaren’s awful early pace this year, but when they finally got the development of the car right, he took full advantage.
His back-to-back podiums in Japan and Qatar also included a maiden Sprint Race win will live long in the memory.
He’s consistently scored points in the second half of the season and helped McLaren leapfrog Aston Martin in the Constructors’ Championship.
The varying strategies in Abu Dhabi meant Martin Brundle had plenty to discuss on commentary and very much enjoyed Piastri’s attempts to defend against much more experienced drivers.
All eyes will be on just how fast his McLaren is in 2024 and whether they’ll be Red Bull’s closest competitors.
If they are, there’s no reason why he and Lando Norris can’t consistently fight with Max Verstappen at the front of the grid.
Brundle hails Piastri defending in Abu Dhabi
The first driver Piastri had to showcase his talent against was George Russell, with David Croft saying: “As George Russell tries around the outside of Oscar Piastri once again and that was a little easier for Oscar Piastri to fight. Russell’s giving it a right old go here but he just can’t take that fourth place off the Australian driver.”
Brundle added: “No, he’s taken a wide, high line into that parabolic corner at the end of the second straight and Piastri’s too wise for that one and too calm.”
Later in the race, Piastri was battling Fernando Alonso and Brundle said: “He’s locked up again in turn six, that puts him out of position for seven and Alonso will again have DRS.
“But what impressed me there about Piastri is he didn’t go and defend fresh air, he didn’t go and make a defence he didn’t have to.
“He was confident enough that Alonso wasn’t going to lunge him and therefore he kept his momentum.”
While Nyck de Vries’s rookie season lasted just ten races and Logan Sargeant’s 2024 plans are in doubt, Brundle is likely to be commentating on Piastri’s races in Abu Dhabi and beyond for the foreseeable future.
He signed a deal long-term deal with McLaren midway through the season and showed why they were so keen to snatch him off Alpine last year.
The challenge now is to turn potential into points and although there’s no shame in finishing more than 100 points behind Norris this season, he’ll be keen to close the gap in 2024.
Zak Brown will recognise how strong a pairing he has in F1 right now and it’s up to the team to deliver a car that can make the most of it.
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