Mark Webber praises Oscar Piastri's rapid rise after four wins in 50 races

Dominika Jordan
Apr 17, 2025, 1:27 PM ET

Mark Webber praises Oscar Piastri's rise in F1, sees him as a future championship contender.

Red Bull Racing/Red Bull Content Pool

Oscar Piastri's manager, Mark Webber, recognizes the significant evolution of his apprentice after his first 50 Formula 1 Grands Prix, positioning him as a serious contender for the world championship.

Piastri has emerged as the first driver this season to secure two Grand Prix victories, triumphing in China and Bahrain. Currently, he is just three points behind his teammate Lando Norris in the championship standings. Mark Webber, who retired with nine career wins from his F1 career spanning from 2002 to 2013, understands the challenges of converting opportunities into wins. Webber himself competed in 130 Grand Prix races before clinching his first win in Germany in 2009. Witnessing Piastri achieve four wins in just 50 Grand Prix is an impressive milestone.

"Four wins, 13 podiums, so early in his career, is of course something very important, and it puts him in another category," Webber shared on the F1 Nation podcast. "As we know, you may have the machine for it, but it is not always easy to convert these opportunities. He has converted the two poles at once. So I think what we are seeing at the beginning of his career is a job carefully done up to the present."

Having driven for Minardi, Jaguar, Williams, and Red Bull, Webber was also pleased with Piastri's seamless performance in Bahrain. The young Australian claimed pole position and remained untroubled in the race, even after a restart in the second half. Such victories might seem easy on paper but require total concentration.

"All the victories, when you have the chance to win several as he already does, can be a little different. This one was probably the most comfortable he has had, though there will certainly be more stressful ones in the future. This weekend went off without a hitch for him. It's a circuit that, once again, needed work, like Shanghai, and he won at both, so that's another positive."

The question now is whether Oscar Piastri can maintain his winning streak this weekend in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia, and take the lead in the world championship for the first time in his career.