Piastri warns Verstappen with confidence in Imola with McLaren's potential pace

"I think the track position is going to be very important, yes, but I think our race pace should be strong and I don’t think it’s the end of our chances to win if I’m not leading after the first lap," the Australian driver began to Viaplay.

At the Saudi Arabia Grand Prix, the two drivers already locked horns into Turn 1. After Verstappen received a five-second penalty, the McLaren driver took home the victory in Jeddah.

Piastri marginally finished ahead of Verstappen in qualifying, and could win his fourth Grands Prix in a row if he will cross the finish line in first place in Italy.

He continued: "I’ll try and get a good start, make sure I do, that would make things a lot easier for sure. But I don’t think it’s the end of the world if I don’t. So let’s see what happens, but I’m confident."

Currently, Piastri leads ahead of Lando Norris by 16 points in the standings. Max Verstappen's gap behind the Australian stands at 32 points after a quarter of the season has been completed.