Mark Webber will help guide the career of young Australian driver and Formula One aspirant Oscar Piastri
Young Melbourne Formula 3 driver Oscar Piastri won a spot in the Renault Sport Academy and now he has a former Australian F1 star guiding his career.
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Mark Webber will help guide the career of one of Australia’s brightest international racing prospects as the manager of rising young Melbourne driver Oscar Piastri.
The Australian former Formula One star has signed Piastri to his sports management company as the 18-year-old strives to follow in Webber’s footsteps towards F1.
Piastri’s Formula One ambitions were given a turbo boost after recently joining the F1 family of Australian Daniel Ricciardo as part of the Renault Sport Academy.
The teenager was recruited to Renault’s academy after dominating to claim the 2019 Formula Renault Eurocup drivers’ championship. He will move up another motorsport rung to race in Formula 3 with the series’ reigning champions Prema Racing in 2020.
Webber considered Piastri an exciting talent, who was “tenacious” with the helmet on.
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“It’s nice to be in a position where we can give him some guidance and help him along the journey,” Webber said.
“We’re stoked that Renault are seeing the vision and skill in him and they can support him as well … if he does a great job, Renault have banked on him to do something pretty good.
“Oscar has got a great scenario in front of him, but he is extremely level-headed and he knows the job at hand and he is going to do his best this year.”
Renault’s academy aims to nurture young racing drivers with the ultimate goal to place an academy driver in the race seat for the F1 team.
Asked if he thought Piastri could make it all the way to Formula 1, Webber, a nine-time F1 race winner, said there was still a long journey ahead but the next two years would be critical.
“It’s obviously early days, there are a lot of youngsters doing really well,” Webber said.
“I think that he is showing all the right signs at the moment. There is no crystal ball in how the next two or three years are going to look, but certainly we’re optimistic that he has got the goods about him. But Oscar knows that the next 24 months are very important
“We hope one day that Australia will know the work that he is putting in now.”
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Piastri said it would be a major boost for his career having Webber in his corner.
“I think everyone in Australia knows who Mark Webber is and he’s a pretty big name to have on my side,” Piastri said.
“Mark’s been through Formula 1, LMP1, and other categories through the years, so he has the experience that I’m sure if I have any issues, he will be able to steer me in the right direction or to the right people in the paddock.
“It doesn’t change how I go racing; my goals are still the same; it’s just that I’ve got outstanding people in my corner now.”