Webber to Piastri: Keep learning

Piastri has been under the spotlight ever since he became an F1 driver after Alpine and McLaren battled for his services, the latter winning, which put pressure on the young Aussie to deliver and show what all the fuss was about.

And indeed Piastri delivered as he gave Lando Norris a run for his money almost immediately after they became teammates, and while Norris showed he is the faster driver, especially over one lap, Piastri showed he had strong race craft from the get-go, and in 2025 appears to have upped his game over a single flying lap.

But Piastri has had great support in his corner in the form of Webber, a veteran of 215 grands prix and a nine-time race winner.

Webber reflected on Piastri's development so far in the aftermath of the latter's win of the 2025 Bahrain Grand Prix last Sunday.

Webber said: "Four wins now, 13 podiums, so early in his career is of course a really huge feather in his cap. As we know, you can have the machinery, but it’s often not easy to convert those opportunities.

"He’s converted the two poles straight away, so I think what we’re seeing quite early in his career is a job well done so far.

"All the wins, when you’re lucky enough to win a few like he has already, they can be a bit different, and that one was probably the most comfortable one he’s had, but there’ll be more stressful ones in the future.

"This whole weekend [Bahrain] went very smooth for him. It’s a track which, again, was one that needed work, like Shanghai, and he’s won on both of them, so that’s another positive," the former Red Bull Racing driver pointed out.

Quizzed about Piastri's qualifying performance and whether he has improved, Webber responded: "Yeah, I think that’s, as a Formula 1 driver, a big component of your profession.

"So it’s something that’s not lost on him, that over your journey, when you’re up against Max [Verstappen], Charles [Leclerc], Lando, Lewis [Hamilton], like these guys in the first few years, there’s some serious artillery there over one lap.

"And to put it all together, we know how sensitive it is to execute these cars and tyres on Saturday, so because of the intelligence of the boy and understanding what he needs to improve, yeah.

"But as I say to him, you have the most experience the day you retire, so keep learning," was the advice to Piastri Webber concluded with.

Piastri, after his win in Bahrain, is second in the F1 drivers' championship, three points behind leader Norris and five points ahead of Verstappen in third.

(Quotes from F1 Nation podcast)