Australian Grand Prix 2023: F1 news ahead of Albert Park as McLaren sack tech boss

Aussie world champion Alan Jones has backed Oscar Piastri after a rough start to his time in Formula One. And Jones is tipping big things for him this year and beyond.

McLaren drivers Lando Norris and Oscar Piastri have endured a tough start to 2023.

Alan Jones has predicted Oscar Piastri will be Australia’s next Formula One world champion as fellow F1 great Damon Hill backed the young gun to take it up to McLaren teammate Lando Norris on the track this year.

Ahead of Piastri’s Australian Grand Prix debut at Albert Park next week, 1980 F1 world champion Jones described the 21-year-old as a rare racing talent who has won everything he had “ever put his bum in”.

Piastri entered F1 with high expectations and a glowing junior racing resume, which included back-to-back F3 and F2 championship wins, but it has been a challenging start to his career at McLaren.

The Melburnian (19th) and British teammate Norris (20th) occupy the last two positions in the F1 drivers’ championship standings, with Piastri’s 15th in Saudi Arabia the team’s best result.

Despite the gloomy start, Jones, Australia’s last F1 world champion, felt Piastri was capable of big things in Formula One.

Alan Jones has lauded Oscar Piastri. Picture: Clive Mason/Getty Images

“I think he can go on to be world champion,” Jones said.

“Every now and again someone comes along that has got an enormous amount of talent and I reckon he is one of those sorts of people.

“Everything he has ever put his bum in, he has won and there are not too many people that can say that.

“He has certainly got the ability to go on and be a world champion.

“He is as impressive out of the car as what he is in the car. He handles himself extremely well. I think that apart from (deliving) the results for the team, he is also going to be very good for the sponsors.”

Piastri retired with technical problems in the opening race in Bahrain, but his prospects in Saudi Arabia were crushed by first-lap contact after starting from eighth.

Jones, who will be part of the Channel 10 commentary team alongside Hill for the Australian Grand Prix, said Piastri had already showcased his potential amid the papaya struggles.

“He has had a little bit of bad luck, none of which was his doing,” Jones said.

“But he has certainly shown the sort of performances that we expected that he would, particularly the last one (Saudi Arabia), I thought he drove particularly well.

“He hasn’t driven anything for 12 months, so to come in after a 12 month lay-off and then go to Formula One and go to circuits he has never been to before, it’s a bit of a steep learning curve for him.

“But as I said, I think he has got the ability and I think eventually he will take it to Lando and probably sooner rather than later.”

Piastri suffered contact on the first lap in Saudi Arabia. Picture: Lars Baron/Getty Images

Hill, the 1996 world champion, also had no doubt Piastri could give Norris, in his fifth season at McLaren, headaches as a competitive teammate this year.

“Absolutely I think he can. I think that’s already evident that he is not too far off,” Hill said.

“I’m sure Lando has got the edge on experience when it comes to circuits (Piastri) has not been to and also to conditions and situations.

“But (Piastri) is an intelligent kid and he is bright-eyed and can cope with himself. He has got confidence in his own ability and I think that is such a big part of the chemistry that you need to have.”

Hill said Piastri already looked at home in Formula One.

“(He has been) very solid, very professional and confident,” Hill said.

“He has not shown, he does not look at all overawed by Formula One.

“But Oscar has got, seems at home, which is half the battle. He looks like he knows he should be there.

“He has got a good experienced head as an advisor with (manager) Mark Webber and I think that is really important to have people behind you who understand what the game is.

“It’s either a piranha pool or a snake pit or a shark pool, I don’t know what it is Formula One, but you snooze, you lose and you have got to keep your wits about you, but he has got a good guy in Mark for that.”

Sacked: McLaren make huge change on eve of Aus GP

Struggling Formula One outfit McLaren has sacked their technical director in a mass overhaul of their program in a bid to stop their slide to the rear of the F1 grid.

McLaren boss Zak Brown announced overnight that executive technical director James Key would leave the team as part of an overhaul which would see three new technical director roles introduced.

The move comes after McLaren’s horror start to 2023, sitting last in the constructors’ championship without any points after two rounds.

McLaren endured a troubled year in 2022, dropping to fifth in the overall title after losing a battle with Alpine for fourth place as Australian driver Daniel Ricciardo was sacked with a year to run on his contract.

But Ricciardo’s departure has done nothing to improve performance for the papaya, with No.1 driver Lando Norris having the worst results of his career in 2023 while rookie Aussie teammate Oscar Piastri has also struggled to get any performance out of their MCL60.

James Key has been sacked as McLaren’s technical director. Picture: Getty Images

Under the changes Peter Prodromou moves into the role of Technical Director, Aerodynamics, David Sanchez returns to McLaren next season as Technical Director, Car Concept and Performance after a decade at Ferrari, Neil Houldey is promoted into the newly created role of Technical Director, Engineering and Design, Giuseppe Pesce is promoted to Director, Aerodynamics & Chief of Staff, to support the running of the aero department reporting into Peter.

The F1 technical team will report to team principal Andrea Stella.

“Looking ahead, I am determined and fully focused on leading McLaren back to the front of the field,” Stella said.

McLaren drivers Lando Norris and Oscar Piastri have endured a tough start to 2023.

“Since taking on the Team Principal role I have been given the mandate to take a strategic approach to ensure the team is set on a long-term foundation, for us to build on over the years.

“This new structure provides clarity and effectiveness within the team’s technical department and puts us in a strong position to maximise performance, including optimising the new infrastructure upgrades we have coming in 2023.

McLaren CEO Brown concede the team had not kept pace with the technical development of other racing outfits so a mass overhaul was required.

Lando Norris leads Oscar Piastri during the F1 Grand Prix of Saudi Arabia. Picture: Getty Images

“It’s important now that we ensure we have a solid foundation as the next phase of our journey,” Brown said.

“It has been clear to me for some time that our technical development has not moved at a quick enough pace to match our ambition of returning to the front of the grid. I’m pleased that, having completed a full review with Andrea, we are now able to implement the restructure required to set the wheels in motion to turn this around.

“These strategic changes ensure the long-term success of the team and are necessary to see McLaren get back to winning ways.

Lando Norris leads Oscar Piastri during the F1 Grand Prix of Saudi Arabia. Picture: Getty Images

“We have everything coming into place now with our people and infrastructure and alongside an exciting driver line-up, I’m determined to see McLaren get back to where we should be.”

Lead driver Norris endorsed the changes, tweeting on Friday: “From team changes to major infrastructure upgrades, every single one of us is working flat out to get McLaren back to the top. Seeya soon ‘straya.”

David Sanchez commented: “I’m excited to be returning to the team in Woking and look forward to working alongside Peter and Neil and the rest of the team to achieve our performance objectives. McLaren has always had an extremely talented group of people and alongside the new infrastructure upgrades coming online this year, we have an exciting prospect ahead that I’m delighted to be a part of.”