Piastri at a turning point: Will the McLaren driver keep up with Norris?

Oscar Piastri is potentially a great driver. There is absolutely no one in the F1 paddock who has any doubt about that. But with 28 Grands Prix now behind him, the time has now come when the Australian is no longer a talent and therefore there a change in what should be expected of him. The reality is that Piastri is currently being outperformed by teammate Lando Norris, and that should slowly start to worry him.

That Norris won the Miami Grand Prix was partly due to a nice stroke of luck. Had race control followed the correct procedure with the safety car, Max Verstappen would probably have ended up with the win. Still, the tremendous pace Norris showed after taking first place was admirable. With his leading RB20, Verstappen failed to keep up with the McLaren.

Piastri sank through the ice in Miami

Norris won, while at the back of the midfield - almost 50 seconds behind the winner - teammate Oscar Piastri crossed the line in 12th place. So, in a weekend where Norris took 25 points, Piastri, with a fast McLaren, did not even manage to get ahead of Esteban Ocon and Pierre Gasly (in the lacklustre Alpines) and Nico Hulkenberg (Haas F1). Of course, there was the clash with Carlos Sainz. But before and after that, Piastri could never match the pace of Norris. In all the euphoria after the win, McLaren may not have paid attention to Piastri for a while, but he delivered a miserable performance. 

Indeed in Miami, Norris had access to McLaren's full upgraded package and Piastri only receive half of the new part. And yes, the safety car came at a happy time for Norris and it was less pleasant for Piastri. Still, the difference should never be as great as it was now. More painful for Piastri: it is not the first time this season. For now, Norris beats his Australian teammate almost structurally. Only in Saudi Arabia did Piastri manage to finish ahead of the now one-time GP winner.

Piastri on his way to becoming a true 'midfield' driver

Meanwhile, Piastri is thus fast on his way towards his 30th Grand Prix. In the past, there were many careers in the sport that lasted less than thirty races. So Piastri can slowly be expected to show his potential more often, otherwise he could easily end up like, say, Esteban Ocon: highly rated as a youngster, but eventually stalled in his development and then developed into the prototype of a midfield driver.

To draw a comparison: Max Verstappen won his first Grand Prix (at a younger age than Piastri) at his 24th attempt. So Piastri has already passed that number and it is not in the air for Piastri to pick up a win anytime soon - although the 2016 Red Bull could rival the current McLaren in terms of position within F1 power ranking of cars.

Piastri bad at managing tyres

Piastri's biggest problem is that he does not yet manage his tyres well enough. Verstappen as well as Lando Norris are masters at that. Too often, Piastri either burns his Pirelli tyres or is too careful with them. Finding the right balance there is difficult, but it does distinguish the good drivers from the top performers. Moreover, Piastri should also get off the track a bit more often, be more aggressive in an offensive or defensive move.

Piastri is stuck with McLaren until the end of 2026, so the British team - rightly - has every confidence in the Australian. But the time has come for the 23-year-old to take the next step, lest he could become a former talent who ultimately turned out not to be what was expected of him.