Pedro De La Rosa backs 22-year-old who’s ‘very good circuit learner’ to thrive in Las Vegas

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Aston Martin brand ambassador Pedro De La Rosa has backed McLaren rookie Oscar Piastri to do very well in Las Vegas this weekend.

The Spaniard was talking on the F1 Nation Podcast ahead of the newest circuit on the calendar.

Las Vegas will give drivers plenty to think about this weekend as all 20 drivers experience a new track for the first time since Miami was introduced last year.

While every driver would have spent hours and hours using the simulator to learn the track, there’s nothing like actually feeling the circuit underneath them in real life.

The track temperatures are expected to make warming up the tyres difficult, while if the track surface is different to how they’ve set up the simulator then it’ll be a learning process for the drivers.

Oscar Piastri has had a phenomenal rookie season with McLaren, the highlight being winning the Sprint Race in Qatar earlier this year.

His teammate Lando Norris has reached another level in recent weeks but Piastri is one of the most exciting talents on the grid right now.

Pedro De La Rosa believes Piastri might have an early advantage over some of his rivals this weekend.

As a rookie, he’s used to learning new tracks much faster than his rivals.

The likes of Lewis Hamilton and Fernando Alonso know most circuits on the grid inside out, while Piastri is continuing a streak of six tracks on the bounce that he’d never raced on before.

De La Rosa backs Piastri to succeed in Las Vegas

Speaking about the McLaren drivers, De La Rosa said: “They will be strong for sure. Lando [Norris] is extremely competitive, experienced.

“And Oscar [Piastri] is also a very good circuit learner. Oscar has proved that he can go to Suzuka and within a few laps be there with Lando.

“So, I think for a new driver like Oscar to Formula 1, that he’s been learning so many new tracks this season, he will kind of be used to it.

“On the other hand, then you have the drivers that have been racing forever on the same tracks, they will have to learn a new track which they’re not so much used to it.

“But in any case, it’s only in FP1, the first few laps, after that, it’s easy for Formula 1 drivers to learn new tracks, they’re used to it.”

Piastri will hope that De La Rosa’s prediction comes true and he can end the season on a high in Las Vegas and Abu Dhabi.

After back-to-back podiums in Japan and Qatar, he’s only scored four points in the last three races.

He was unlucky to be collected by a crash at Interlagos and his collision with Esteban Ocon saw his race in Austin end in the opening laps.

Piastri needs 13 points to reach triple figures in 2023 which would be a phenomenal effort for his first season in Formula 1.