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With the upcoming new season offering a clean slate for every driver/team pairing on the grid, it remains to be seen where Oscar Piastri stands in the pecking order at McLaren.
Lando Norris’ title-winning campaign raised a lot of questions over the treatment of Oscar Piastri within the ranks of the Woking-based team.
The Australian led the championship standings for 15 rounds of the 24-race weekend calendar, but certain decisions that were made on the pit-wall led many F1 paddock insiders to believe that McLaren were favouring Norris over him.
In the end, mistakes are what cost Piastri the title, but the inner workings at the British constructor may also have catalysed the silly errors that saw the 24-year-old slip down to third place in the standings at the end of the season.
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Formula 1 psychologist warns McLaren about repeating Fernando Alonso mistake with Oscar Piastri
In an interview with Motorsport Italia, F1 psychologist Riccardo Ceccarelli was asked about the current mental state of the drivers who will be taking part in the upcoming season of Formula 1 racing.
Since starting his career in F1 in 1989, the Italian has worked with over 80 drivers and nearly 20 teams, becoming one of the most respected figures in the paddock.
On the topic of Piastri, Ceccarelli sent a stern warning to McLaren over their treatment of the Australian, saying, “I see Oscar in a position of mistrust.
“In his mind, he may still have doubts that he was not given the support that Norris was guaranteed in the latter part of the season.
“The Australian could have a doubtful attitude, as happened to [Fernando] Alonso with [Lewis] Hamilton at McLaren.
“They will have to put this thought out of his mind in the first few races; otherwise, Piastri will be among the first to look for a new team in 2027.”
The Spaniard’s first stint with the Woking-based outfit ended after just one season of racing in 2007, after a highly toxic championship battle with a rookie Hamilton gripped the sport.
Alonso found that he was being cast aside in favour of Hamilton, and swiftly returned back to Renault for 2008.
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Finish the sentence: In his Formula 1 career, Oscar PIastri will win ____ titles
Oscar Piastri has been linked with an exit from McLaren in recent months
During the midst of his title fight with Norris in 2025, it emerged that Piastri had already ‘set his sights’ on a Ferrari move in 2027.
His manager, former F1 driver Mark Webber, knows the calibre of driver that his client is, and is dead-set against him receiving the same treatment as he did alongside Sebastian Vettel at Red Bull at the beginning of the 2010s.
Ralf Schumacher has also suggested Aston Martin as a potential landing spot for Piastri if he does opt to find greener pastures elsewhere.
The Silverstone-based outfit is expected to be making a leap up the pecking order of F1 next year, through the leadership of Adrian Newey and their new collaboration with Honda.
If Alonso decides to call it quits on his F1 career at the end of the upcoming term, an opportunity would present itself to the current McLaren driver.
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