McLaren quite impressed by Piastri's 'mature race craft'

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McLaren team boss Andrea Stella says he was impressed by the "mature" race craft displayed by F1 rookie Oscar Piastri in the British Grand Prix.

At Silverstone last weekend, Piastri scored his third top-ten finish in F1 but it was by far the young Aussie's best performance.

Having qualified third on Saturday, just behind his McLaren teammate Lando Norris, Piastri followed up that remarkable performance with P4 in Sunday's race.

Unfortunately, the 22-year-old missed out on a spot on the podium due to completing his single pit stop in the race just before the start of a Safety Car period that benefitted the Mercedes of Lewis Hamilton who finished third.

Read also:

Norris: Piastri 'making my life tough' but McLaren benefitting

Assessing Piastri's merits of late, Stella especially noted the Aussie's remarkable tyre management abilities amid difficult circumstances at Silverstone.

"If anything, the element that stands out today is his race craft and the ability to keep life in the tyres, [while] clean driving in an intense racing situation," said the McLaren F1 boss.

"Thinking about the Safety Car restart on the Hard tyre, he was immediately there. So this is mature race craft, which is quite impressive in a guy that is so young."

Overall, Stella believes that Piastri is now a good reference for Lando Norris regarding his speed in certain corners.

"Oscar's performance is just outstanding, and to think he is a rookie," he said. "Already in practice he was immediately quick.

"He was, in some corners, a good reference for Lando. The last corner in Barcelona he was quick straight away, and here in some of the high speed [corners] Oscar was again very quick."

Norris admitted after last weekend race at Silverstone, that Piastri was making life tough for him at McLaren, which in turn is forcing him to raise his game, an emulation that the Briton believes is benefitting his team.

Stella agreed with Norris' view but added that the inner-team rivalry is beneficial to both drivers.

"These allow some synergies between the drivers because both can see where you can improve from each other, and this elevates their performance," commented the Italian.

"So not only we are impressed, but with a net benefit in having two competitive drivers, they can both benefit."

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Phillip van Osten

Motor racing was a backdrop from the outset in Phillip van Osten's life. Born in Southern California, Phillip grew up with the sights and sounds of fast cars thanks to his father, Dick van Osten, an editor and writer for Auto Speed and Sport and Motor Trend. Phillip's passion for racing grew even more when his family moved to Europe and he became acquainted with the extraordinary world of Grand Prix racing. He was an early contributor to the monthly French F1i Magazine, often providing a historic or business perspective on Formula 1's affairs. In 2012, he co-authored along with fellow journalist Pierre Van Vliet the English-language adaptation of a limited edition book devoted to the great Belgian driver Jacky Ickx. He also authored "The American Legacy in Formula 1", a book which recounts the trials and tribulations of American drivers in Grand Prix racing. Phillip is also a commentator for Belgian broadcaster Be.TV for the US Indycar series.