Oscar Piastri will race with #81, McLaren’s Australian 21-year-old confirmed to F1.com ahead of his Formula 1 rookie season as Lando Norris’ teammate.
Brought through the ranks by Alpine, Piastri caused a stir when he “defected’ to McLaren who ousted underperforming Daniel Ricciardo to make way for his fellow countryman.
In other words, Piastri has nowhere to hide in his rookie season, taking the place of a much admired and respected driver he will have to show what he is worth against 23-year-old Norris, who is now the defacto team leader, due to his experience.
Speaking on In the Fast Lane Australian Grand Prix podcast, the young Aussie revealed why #81 is his choice: “As long as nobody pinches that before we put in my number, but I think that’s pretty safe! Eighty-one was the number I had in karting. The story of how I got 81 is not particularly interesting but I’ll explain it anyway…
“When I did my first race I had to pick a number for my first race and the kart shop I went to only had number ones in stock, and it had to be a one or two-digit number.
“I obviously couldn’t be number one because yeah, for obvious reasons, so I was actually number 11 for my first couple of races, and then we entered – I think it was the Victorian state titles – and somebody had already entered as number 11.
“I don’t know what inspired me to pick 81 but I changed the first one for a number eight, and it stuck ever since. So, there you go!”
Piastri finally did duty for McLaren at the post-2022 F1 season Young Driver Test, where he impressed his team and he stated afterwards: “I think we learned a lot. It was great to finally join up with the team.
“I’m looking forward to next year now. I’ll be in the factory next week to meet the whole team, after that I’ll take a short break before getting back to work with McLaren to prepare for next year,” added Piastri, who is set to be the 773rd driver to race in F1.