Ricciardo gives Piastri important Formula One lesson

Oscar Piastri sits in Daniel Ricciardo's spot at Mclaren next season. Although the experienced driver would have loved to stay with the British formation, he believes the talent has everything he needs to succeed. According to Ricciardo, however, Piastri needs to think about a few things.

Ricciardo knows better than anyone how pressure feels in Formula 1. Expectations will not be too high yet in Piastri's first season, but that does not mean the Australian does not have to prove himself. With the usually well-performing Lando Norris alongside him, he cannot let the gap become too big.

The 33-year-old Ricciardo, who has been under contract with McLaren for the last two seasons, knows that doing so carries the danger of wanting to get more out of race weekends than is possible. He therefore hopes Piastri will be able to keep the focus on his own performance in 2023.

"Learn, be a sponge, but drive," Ricciardo said in conversation with Formula1.com. "Don’t see the bar too high for yourself, if you end up doing better than maybe what you thought, awesome, but just take it race by race. But as long as you are learning and you feel like you are improving every race, I think that is all you can kind of ask for yourself."

Ambitious McLaren wants progress

More changes took place at McLaren. With Andrea Stella replacing departed team boss Andreas Seidl, it may need time to settle in. Within a couple of seasons, the team hopes to compete for the world title. Last season, it finished fifth among constructors.