Chris Piastri, Oscar’s dad, on claims of McLaren bias and his son’s shot at F1 glory

What’s life like for the father of an F1 driver who is about to drive for the title? In his first public interview for three years, Chris Piastri tells all.

Like any protective Australian dad, Chris Piastri just wants the best for his kids.

He gets a kick out of seeing them do well, but also feels their pain and disappointment whenever things don’t go as planned, so he’s always got their backs.

He’s got four children – a son and three daughters – but, right now, it’s his boy, Oscar, who he’s mostly looking out for.

That’s because his firstborn is a rising star of Formula One and is locked in an engrossing three-way battle for the world drivers’ championship.

The winner will be crowned at the season-ending Abu Dhabi Grand Prix, starting at midnight on Sunday, with the eyes of the sporting world watching closely.

Millions of people from all over the globe will tune in to watch the high-speed, high-octane race that has all the ingredients for a classic gladiatorial battle on wheels.

Just three drivers remain in contention for the greatest prize in motorsport so the stakes and pressure are unimaginably high for each.

At just 24, Piastri is the youngest and least experienced of the trio.

He has the entire backing of Australia, but is still regarded as the outsider because he’s 16 points behind in the standings with only 25 left to play for.

The clear favourite is England’s Lando Norris, Piastri’s McLaren teammate, and championship leader.

However, the smart money is on the Dutchman Max Verstappen, the four-time defending titleholder, who has charged back into the frame despite driving an inferior Red Bull.

Chris and the other members of the Piastri family who have flown over to the Middle East will watch the race from the McLaren hospitality suite, with cameras right in their faces to capture the rollercoaster ride of their emotions.

Oscar Piastri embraces his dad Chris after winning in Belgium this year.

They’re proud, excited and anxious at the same time. Chris is optimistic his son can pull off another of his trademark miracle wins, but he’s mostly just hoping his lad makes it to the chequered flag in one piece.

A computer and automotive entrepreneur, Chris hasn’t done a full public interview in three years, since his son first made it to F1. He sat down exclusively with CODE Sports in Abu Dhabi to share his insight into how his son is faring before the biggest race of his life.

“The overriding feeling is Oscar’s gonna go out there and do his best,” Chris said. “I’m nervous for him obviously.”

F1 may be the most glamorous sport on the planet but it also comes with serious health risks as the drivers reach speeds approaching 350km/h. For friends and relatives, it’s difficult viewing.

A relative newcomer in only his third season of F1, Piastri always appears unflappably relaxed when he’s going full throttle, but less so when he’s left dealing with the intense scrutiny and speculation that’s part of being in the circus.

Right now, he’s at the centre of a firestorm about the way he’s being treated by McLaren.

Desperate to see Piastri win the world title, many Australians are convinced that he’s being stitched up by the British-based team so Norris can win the title.

That’s not true, according to McLaren, but Chris has Oscar’s back, so he’s been checking everything out to make sure.

“There’s been a couple of obvious ones that have been sort of reported on to death — Monza being the standout — but I don’t sort of buy into it too much,” Chris said.

“From Oscar’s side of things, there’s just been a few races where they sort of got away from him. Baku obviously was a big one but also Austin and Mexico where he just struggled for pace.

“There’s absolutely nothing behind the scenes there. I don’t think there’s anything I would put my finger on.

“If there was something there then the best way to fight it is just win the races, and put it beyond doubt, so that if there is any little conscious or unconscious bias within the team that it doesn’t matter, there’s nothing that can be done about it.”

Cisa Norris, mother of Lando Norris, with Chris Piastri.

At times, Piastri has still voiced his frustration at things that have gone against him. He was clearly unhappy when he was told by McLaren to let Norris pass him at the Italian Grand Prix just because his teammate had been held up by a slow pit stop.

And Piastri was fuming after being robbed of victory at Qatar last week when the McLaren pit wall made a massive strategic blunder by not swapping tyres under a safety car.

Despite the leaks and reports of division within McLaren, Chris said his son was not paying any attention to any of the conspiracy theories, knowing they will only distract him from his goal.

Nor will either of them be pointing the finger of blame at McLaren if the 2025 title ends up in the hands of Norris or Verstappen.

Australian F1 driver Oscar Piastri and his father Chris.

“If it doesn’t go his way, he’ll focus like crazy on next year’s car and everything that’s going on there,” Chris said.

“He won’t buy into any coulda, shoulda, woulda stuff.

“And he certainly won’t buy into any angle that somehow he was robbed by the team of the championship. I don’t think that’s true anyway.”

Piastri’s immediate focus is on trying to win the 2025 title.

He’s already tasted international success by winning the Formula Renault, F3 and F2 titles and remains way ahead of the curve.

Oscar Piastri has been a championship contender for much of 2025.

In just his third year in the premier category, Piastri has chalked up nine Grands Prix and is already contending for the championship.

“He’ll never change. Well, I hope he doesn’t change,” Chris said.

“He’s just easygoing, minimum fuss. Just a very humble personality. He doesn’t really go for the glitz and glamour of it all.

“He certainly doesn’t like the more contrived parts of the show. He’s just a pure racer.”

That’s not to say Piastri isn’t immune to the hype or indifferent to the big prize that’s within his grasp as he prepares for the lights to go out at the Yas Marina circuit.

While he may appear ice-cool from the outside, he’s also ferociously determined when he gets behind the wheel, so isn’t giving up hope of walking away with all the chocolates.

“The highs and lows of motorsport are so far apart that the highs are really high and the lows are really low,” Chris said.

“I think Oscar learned that lesson really early on in his career, that you’ve sort of got to celebrate the victories, because the lows, and we’ve seen a lot of those over the last three years, you can’t dwell on those and overthink them.

“It’s a long season, 24 races, the drivers are tired, the teams are tired, the mechanics are tired, the engineers are tired, the roadies are tired, everyone’s tired.

“So, firstly, he’s kinda looking forward to the end of it. But secondly he knows that all he can do is go out there and do his best.

Oscar Piastri takes a photo with F1 fans.

“For a 24-year-old it’s very hard not to get caught up in some of the hype and the emotion, but Oscar is the best I’ve ever seen at that.

“His ability to just focus on the job at hand and put all that out of his mind, even if it’s just for the four sessions and the race, he does it better than anyone I’ve seen.

“If something happens where he wins it then yeah it’s gonna be a huge party and everyone’s gonna be over the moon.

“Oscar himself will be in a state of shock that he’s pulled off another one from the depths. If he wins it’s gonna be an immense celebration.”

Originally published as Chris Piastri, Oscar’s dad, on claims of McLaren bias and his son’s shot at F1 glory