McLaren car requires adapted driving style: 'Not 100 per cent natural'

Oscar Piastri is not worried about having had to change his driving style at McLaren. The Australian has noticed that the British team's car drives differently, which has forced Piastri to change a few things. However, the young driver does not expect this to cause any problems in the future.

Piastri enjoyed an impressive junior career with three titles, including victory in Formula 2. After a messy split with Alpine, the Australian will join McLaren next season as Daniel Ricciardo's replacement. Piastri was given permission by his old team to take part in the Young Driver Test in Abu Dhabi at the end of the 2022 season.

In total, Piastri made two appearances in the McLaren after also taking part in a private test at Paul Ricard just before the Abu Dhabi Grand Prix. The young driver also got to take a seat in the Alpine on several occasions before leaving the French team. This allowed him to compare the two cars. In general, the McLaren car steers very difficult. Ricciardo had a lot of trouble handling the car, which ultimately ended his career at McLaren.

"It’s difficult to say if it’s a McLaren characteristic or a 2022 characteristic. I don’t want to put it into the ‘it’s a McLaren characteristic’ basket. I think there are maybe a few small things that are a bit different", Piastri says opposite Speedcafe.

Drivers have to adapt in every car

The Australian admits that so far he has not been able to drive quite the way he is used to at McLaren, but according to the 21-year-old, drivers have to adapt to each car. It is likely that some key features of last year's McLaren will also return in the new 2023 car.

"I wouldn’t say it was 100 per cent natural, but I don’t think any car is 100 per cent natural. I think one of the difficulties of the sport is being able to adapt", Piastri ends.