Australia’s young star Oscar Piastri has enjoyed another Formula 1 season. The two-time FIA ​​Rookie of the Year has experienced some of the biggest highs while learning the racecraft and consistency required to battle the greats to be crowned champion in 2025.

The 23-year-old’s lasting memory of 2024 will be his first victory in Hungary. To finally break through to become a Formula 1 winner is a dream for many.

Piastri realized his dream after overtaking teammate Lando Norris and world champion Max Verstappen into Turn 1. He controlled his pace until McLaren prioritized Norris at the pit stop. This led to an internal dispute over positions due to the procedural error.

McLaren, new to fighting for wins after the fact, would not make this decision again. Piastri missed something when he ran into the gravel after his stop, but Norris eventually relented to allow the Aussie to take his rightful first win. But by all accounts his second win in Azerbaijan showed the Melburnian’s world championship stuff.

Piastri started second behind Ferrari’s Charles Leclerc and fell behind in the first stint with overuse of his tyres, but after Leclerc pitted and came out just ahead of Piastri, the Aussie pounced. Diving to the inside into turn 1 on lap 20 saw a lead change.

Oscar Piastri from Australia and the McLaren F1 Team. (Photo by Qian Jun/MB Media/Getty Images)

The subsequent pressure taken up by Piastri was difficult to watch. Fighting tooth and nail to hang on for life proved effective as Leclerc finally ran out and left the Aussie to sail home for what he described as his most stressful afternoon.

Piastri and Norris led McLaren to their first constructors’ title since 1998, a remarkable achievement given the young nature of these two drivers.

Many applauded Piastri during the European part of the season for challenging Norris and potentially trying to assert himself as a first driver, something compatriots Mark Webber (his manager) and Daniel Ricciardo failed to do for most of their careers when they were in title contention machinery.

Roar editor Christy Doran made the trip to Seattle with VisitSeattle.org, diving into the city’s electrifying sports vibe, outdoor adventures and renowned food scene. Click here for his latest adventures in the Emerald City.

Piastri’s dive bomb on Norris on lap 1 at Monza was a pronounced overtake that showed just how ruthless the No. 81 car can be. The aforementioned move in Azerbaijan against Leclerc and his overtake in Belgium on the Monegasque ensured that the nominations for overtake of the year were back to back.

Piastris’ racecraft is already one of the distinguishing characteristics that defined his race wins. Unfortunately, he was outclassed over the season compared to Norris. 8-16 in races and 4-20 in qualifying was pretty underwhelming.

Giving Norris some credit in short, he had a great season where he took four wins. Piastri struggled to match the Briton in qualifying, which saw him struggle to overtake him, although his race pace was strong. Piastri when racing wheel-to-wheel is as quick as his teammate, but he doesn’t get into position often enough to do just that.

After the first year, many criticized Piastri’s tire deterioration. Now I think his qualifying issues are proving detrimental. Especially in the latter third of the season, early exits in the US Sprint Shootout and Mexico Qualifying made it difficult to gain momentum.

Oscar Piastri has absolute talent at World Championship level and there is no doubt in my mind that McLaren will bring a car with the potential to crown one of its drivers as World Champion. If Piastri can start next to or ahead of Norris more often, he can assert himself as a team leader.

Next year will be crucial for Piastri and his first chance to make a statement will come in his hometown of Melbourne next March.

Can he announce himself as a leading contender? I think he can.