Former Formula 1 driver and Grand Prix winner Juan Pablo Montoya believes McLaren’s Oscar Piastri is heading into the 2025 season as the driver “with the most to prove,” despite his strong sophomore year in the sport.
Piastri finished fourth in the 2024 Drivers’ championship, securing two impressive wins in Hungary and Azerbaijan but finishing 82 points adrift of his McLaren teammate, Lando Norris.
While the Aussie’s race craft drew praise, his qualifying performances left room for improvement, as he only managed to out-qualify Norris in four of 24 rounds, losing the qualifying head-to-head 20-4.
Reflecting on Piastri’s 2024 campaign, Montoya admitted to being surprised at the McLaren charger’s inability to consistently match Norris.
“Oscar Piastri is the driver with the most to prove next season,” Montoya told Lucky Bloc.
“I really expected him to step up this year and I am a little surprised he didn’t. I really felt that this year he would be better than Lando. But Lando took a massive step forward and Oscar didn’t.”
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Montoya’s remarks underscore the pressure on Piastri to elevate his performance in a team widely expected to contend for both the Drivers’ and Constructors’ Championships in 2025.
Piastri himself has acknowledged the areas where he needs to improve, particularly in qualifying.
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Speaking at the end of the season, the 23-year-old admitted his Saturdays were often a stumbling block, forcing him to fight back in races:
“I think this season, I feel like I’ve made some good steps forward,” he said.
“There’s still room to go. I think, you know, the biggest one has been leaving a few too many positions on the table in qualifying.
“I don’t think I’ve ever really made life easy for myself in the races, in that aspect. So, I think that’s definitely the big focus of the off-season, just trying to get those last hundredths, last tenths.
“Because I feel like in all the other areas, I’ve been able to show what I’m capable of. And also show that I’ve improved from my rookie season. S
“So, again, I feel like it’s now just putting everything together. Because I feel like the gaps now are very, very small or non-existent.”
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