Oscar Piastri is not in F1 just to win. He’s here to win big. The baby-faced assassin has been super-competitive since his childhood, as his mother Nicole revealed recently. As a 5-year-old, he constantly beat her in chess, forcing her to ‘boycott’ playing with him. Piastri has sustained that spirit in his scintillating rise to the top of F1. But the clock that marks the establishment of a new champion also marks the end of another.

Max Verstappen seems to be at the end of his current championship streak. With Red Bull suffering the inevitable aftermath of technical guru Adrian Newey’s exit, the reigning champion will soon lose ‘reigning’ from the title. Emerging from the other corner, McLaren is prepped to take over. Though Lando Norris is the 2024 championship contender, Oscar Piastri is touted to be the better McLaren talent. A generational talent, in fact, as Alpine’s new advisor, Flavio Briatore, declares.

“Piastri, I believe, is one of the next world champions,” Briatore said on the Formula for Success podcast. “If he’s not (world champion) next year, 2027, he’ll be there. If McLaren still have this car, Piastri will be one of the best drivers,” the 74-year-old, who has mentored Michael Schumacher and Fernando Alonso to two championships each, further added.

There’s a pattern developing in such predictions about McLaren’s future. In addition to Piastri’s sophisticated racing talent, his composure in high-pressure situations separates him from more experienced teammate Norris. Surprisingly, a Sky F1 presenter believes that the 23-year-old will overtake his teammate in the championship starting this year itself.

Karun Chandhok’s bold bet on Oscar Piastri taking McLaren’s reins

In Oscar Piastri and Lando Norris, McLaren has two ‘Number 1’ drivers, as CEO Zak Brown described it. But driver disputes can become common in such cases, as the Woking outfit has experienced firsthand with Senna-Prost and Hamilton-Alonso. To avoid an ugly repeat of those, their team orders side with the better driver on a given day, unless championship contingencies are present.

Piastri’s maiden win in Hungary came because of his 40-lap race lead before McLaren botched his strategy. Nonetheless, his statement performance was the first warning for Norris, who hasn’t had a driver better than him alongside him in F1. Karun Chandhok believes Norris’ world will overturn by the end of 2024. “I think there will be races still on a Sunday where Lando will have a slight edge,” he said on The Fast and the Curious podcast, adding, “I think in qualifying they are equal, actually. But I would probably say that in the second half of the year, I take a little punt and say that Oscar will outscore Lando.”

It looks like F1 has found its next world champion and the first from this millennium. 2025 will be one of the best years in F1’s history. Especially with a Ferrari Red-clad Lewis Hamilton shooting for his 8th championship, Verstappen aiming to defend his crown, and the McLaren duo rising to the challenge!