Stella believes in Piastri: 'Very impressed for now'

Andrea Stella is gearing up for his first season as McLaren team boss. The new leader of the formation is confident that Lando Norris and Oscar Piastri will do strongly as a duo next racing year, he told GPblog.

McLaren decided to bid farewell to Daniel Ricciardo at the end of 2022 and snare his compatriot Piastri as his replacement. The rookie showed extensively what he is capable of in the past, while Norris has shown for years that he is a great talent.

"Lando is entering his fifth season," Stella told the press meeting at McLaren's car launch. "I personally think, and I think I have good references coming from my direct experience, he is well established. He is understanding of himself and the needs, is understanding of the team and he has grown into a position which is more of a leadership [role] within the team which is what we want from Lando."

Stella on Piastri's strengths

Stella notices that Piastri is very mature. "When it comes to Oscar, as Zak mentioned before, he is very mature person. The maturity in an F1 car we will see but so far we have been very impressed. There is always a challenge with a new driver, but we have learnt a lot over time."

Although McLaren is taking a certain risk by putting two young drivers in the cars, Stella expects it to come on strong. "It's a young pair when you look at the age, but with Lando, we are in a strong position and with Oscar, we have a very strong asset."