Every Formula 1 driver is asked an important question before his first Grand Prix: 'What number do you want to drive with?' Oscar Piastri, new at McLaren next season, also had to say which number he wants to enter Formula 1 with.
The Australian will be driving with the number 81. So why exactly that number, was the question in the podcast In the Fast Lane? Actually, Piastri explained, 81 became his number by chance. "When I did my first race I had to pick a number for my first race and the kart shop I went to only had number ones in stock, and it had to be a one or two digit number. I obviously couldn’t be number one because yeah, for obvious reasons, so I was actually number 11 for my first couple of races."
Competitor
The number 11 is chosen more often, Piastri soon noticed. At a race in the state of Victoria, a competitor already had this number, so Piastri was forced to choose another one. "I don’t know what inspired me to pick 81 but I changed the first one for a number eight, and it stuck ever since", the Australian said. So he thus becomes the first driver in Formula 1 to drive with 81, since it is possible to choose your own number. This has been possible since 2014.
Piastri is not the only rookie who had to pick a number for his F1 debut. Logan Sargeant, the new man at Williams, also did, and he will drive with the number 2.