Lando Norris and Oscar Piastri are one of the best driver pairings in F1; Piastri is Norris’ third team-mate in F1 after spells alongside Carlos Sainz and Daniel Ricciardo at McLaren.
Lando Norris believes Oscar Piastri is making him a better Formula 1 driver after McLaren scored their first podium of the 2024 season in Melbourne.
Norris took his 14th podium in F1 last time out at the Australian Grand Prix to hold the unwanted record of most podiums without a win.
He was let through by Piastri in the middle of the race, though this likely wouldn’t have changed the result, and both drivers have enjoyed good starts to the season in terms of performance, continuing their impressive second half of 2023.
The McLaren drivers are contracted to stay with the team until at least the end of 2026, with Norris signing a new long-term deal in January.
Piastri is one point ahead of Norris in the standings going into the Japanese GP and was widely touted as one of the best rookies F1 has seen in recent years.
“Last year was already a very tough competition. He (Piastri) has obviously improved, because it’s second year he’s a bit more comfortable,” said Norris on his McLaren team-mate.
“He looked comfortable last year but now he’s probably even more comfortable. He’s doing a strong job and he did since day one last year already, so I don’t expect anything different. He’s going to push me, I’m going to push him and I look forward to our battles together.”
Norris largely had the upper hand on Piastri last year with an impressive run of four consecutive podiums near the end of the season, but it was the Australian who won a race, albeit a Sprint, at the Qatar GP.
McLaren team principal Andrea Stella has been impressed by Piastri’s tyre management, an area which new F1 drivers generally need time to learn.
Stella praised his performance during the Australian GP, stating that he did very well despite the challenging conditions.
Stella attributed the pace difference in the second stint to his early pit stop.
If you look at the last part of the race, when they are pitting closer together, Lando and Oscar are both maintaining a similar pace. Compared to last year in Australia and other locations at the beginning of the season, there has been significant progress.
It is very promising to consider that this progress is only at the start of the second season.
There is still plenty of room for improvement, which bodes well for Oscar’s future.
Norris and Piastri are considered to be among the top driver duos in the racing circuit, despite the presence of highly regarded drivers at Red Bull, Ferrari, and Mercedes.
In Formula 1, driving techniques play a crucial role in performance, and Norris has openly talked about his preference for “U”-shaping corners.
This indicates his desire to brake sooner while maintaining a high speed while navigating the turn.
Last year’s McLaren was better suited for a “V” corner style, which involves braking later and maintaining a lower minimum speed.
The car for this year is better than before, but McLaren still struggles in slow-speed corners, where both Norris and Piastri are looking for increased mechanical grip.
“Norris acknowledged that Piastri has helped him improve as a driver.
He mentioned that since their first test together last year, Piastri has consistently been quick on track. Despite having similar feedback and thoughts on driving, Norris noted that Piastri still has a slightly different approach behind the wheel.”
Having a teammate who can challenge you is important because they may have a different approach that is successful. You can observe and learn from their techniques.
It’s possible that your style or their style may be more effective in different situations.
Having a skilled teammate allows for constant learning opportunities.
“Norris and Piastri’s performances at McLaren up to this point”
| Lando Norris | Oscar Piastri | |
| Qualifying | 17 | 8 |
| Best grid position | 2nd | 2nd |
| Race | 19 | 6 |
| Podiums | 8 | 2 |
| Best race finish | 2nd | 2nd |
| Races in points | 19 | 14 |
| Sprint poles | 1 | 1 |
| Sprint wins | 0 | 1 |
| Points | 232 | 125 |