Piastri: Important to show people you're not a pushover

Piastri delivered an impressive rookie F1 campaign with McLaren, delivering two podiums as well as winning a Sprint Race in Qatar, all that while stacking up well against a formidable teammate in the form of Lando Norris, and for that we have picked him as our rookie of the year.

While he still showed that he lacked some experience in terms of race craft, the young Aussie did not seem to commit glaring errors as he go up to speed in top flight.

Speaking to Motorsport.com, the McLaren drive was asked if he felt he had been underestimated by his rivals, he said: "Not so much.

"Of course, there's an element of respect and I guess racing people how you want to be raced in some ways. I guess I always try and race people hard, but fair.

"At the beginning of the season or beginning of your career, it's always important to show it to people that you're not a pushover because it's not a nice thing to have," Piastri insisted.

The 22-year-old Australian, who replaced compatriot Daniel Ricciardo at McLaren in 2023, said the way battles on track was developed during his years in the junior categories - he won the Formula 3 and Formula 2 Championships from the first time of asking.

"I don't think I'm overly harsh or aggressive or anything like that," Piastri pointed out. "In my junior career, a big element of my championships was from staying out of trouble and being consistent.

"I think there's definitely a good saying in that it's sometimes more important to finish the race and be wrong in a situation than be right about something and be out of the race.

"So, that's kind of always an element I've tried to keep. But I just tried to race hard but fair," Piastri concluded.

Piastri finished the 2023 F1 season ninth in the Drivers' Championship with 97 points, compare to 205 points scored by Norris who finished sixth.