Oscar Piastri believes he experienced almost “every situation” possible in Formula 1 during what transpired to be a “rollercoaster” rookie season.
The Australian’s debut year in the top flight began in unideal circumstances amid McLaren’s admission it had missed development targets with its MCL60 car.
However, the phased launch of a mid-season upgrade package from the Austrian Grand Prix in July transformed the Woking-based squad into a regular front-running contender.
Piastri utilised McLaren’s renewed competitiveness to register his first podium in F1 with third place in Japan before improving to second next time out in Qatar.
Although the rookie was outscored by team-mate Lando Norris by 205 points to 97, Piastri delivered the team’s sole victory of the year in the Sprint at the Lusail circuit.
Together, Norris and Piastri combined to amass the second most points of any side beyond the summer break, helping McLaren to overhaul Aston Martin for fourth position.
“It’s definitely been a bigger roller coaster than I expected,” Piastri reflected. “I knew there would be ups and downs, maybe not as down at the start or as up at the end.
“But I’ve really learned a lot. I feel like I’ve had basically every situation you could have apart from a championship fight. It’s been a good year in terms of learning both.
“I think, as a team, we’re learning how to compete at the front again, which is exciting. It’s not a position we’ve been in for 10 years. So nice to be having these conversations again, going through these scenarios.
“And, for me, it’s really a privilege to be fighting at the front. So early in my career, there’s people that go their whole life on career that don’t have the opportunity that I’ve had in 22 races. So I’m very grateful for that. And I’m looking forward to so many more years to come where hopefully we can do that more often.”
While Piastri credited the team for its remarkable turnaround, the ex-Alpine prospect was proud of the manner in which he maximised McLaren’s improved package.
Asked to review his campaign ahead of the season finale in Abu Dhabi, where he qualified third and finished sixth, Piastri added: “It’s definitely been a great season.
“A lot of highlights that I wouldn’t have been able to do without the team improving the car the way we did, so I have to give a lot of credit to them.
“But also I guess to pat myself on the back, I had to deliver in those moments too.
“I think to me that’s probably the proudest moment. Silverstone where we rocked up with the car that was competitive. I was able to get the most out of it. Japan, not my finest race, but did enough to score my first podium. And Qatar – We had one opportunity really in the whole year to actually win something. And we managed to take it.
“So yeah, for me I can be very proud of that. Definitely some tricky weekends and things still to work on.
“As a whole season, you don’t win championships by one or two good weekends. I know that from my junior career. So I just need to make that happen more often.”
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