Piastri: Excited to be racing in Monza in an F1 car

And to make matter even sweeter for the Australian, the MCL60 he will be driving around the "Temple of Speed" has been developed into a handy piece of kit lately.

While McLaren are trying to put a tough weekend in Zandvoort behind them, where their decision-making process in mixed weather conditions meant they didn't maximize their potential, Piastri is hoping that lessons learned in the Dutch Grand Prix will benefit them in Italy.

Previewing the Italian Grand Prix, Piastri said in McLaren's race preview: "I'm really excited to be racing in Monza in an F1 car.

"It's a fast track, which is fun, but there are some trickier parts. The team have been working hard to keep improving the car, and it feels good going into a race weekend knowing you have a car with so much potential.

"Last weekend showed we're competitive despite the challenges we faced. We'll be taking our learnings into this weekend, and hopefully make the final European race of the year a memorable one," the Australian concluded.

Lando Norris who finished seventh in Zandvoort despite starting from second added: "It felt good to be back racing last weekend at the Dutch GP.

"We may not have finished where we wanted to, but we had a competitive car and scored some points. I've had time to go through everything with the engineers, and we now look ahead to Monza.

"Monza has been a good track for us in the past, so it's a special place for me. The weather may make it another interesting weekend for everyone, but we'll be giving it our all once again," the Briton concluded.

Monza was the scene of McLaren's latest win in F1, as Daniel Ricciardo won it 2021 version with Norris coming home second behind him, and the Woking squad are hoping their good fortune at the Italian venue continues this weekend.

"We come back from the Dutch GP with both cars scoring points, which could have been more as we missed a couple of opportunities in the race," McLaren boss Andrea Stella added.

"However, we are encouraged by having confirmed once again that we have a competitive car.

"The Italian GP in Monza, which recalls some good memories for our Team, marks the last of the European races," he pointed out. "The last few grands prix saw us gain a nice number of points following our upgrades to the MCL60, so we hope to continue on this trajectory.

"We will also be running the Alternative Tyre Allocation in Qualifying. As always, we are determined and will keep working hard to fight for points at the top," Stella concluded.

McLaren enter this weekend's Italian Grand Prix fifth in the 2023 F1 Constructors' Standings 90 points behind Ferrari who are fourth.