2021 Formula 2 champion Piastri was drafted in to replace fellow Australian Daniel Ricciardo, who fell short of expectations during his two seasons at the team as he struggled to master McLaren’s car.

The highly-rated Piastri was expected to be closer to Norris than Ricciardo, and the 21-year-old has delivered on that promise, with Norris admitting that Piastri has “kept me on my toes”. ’ and praised the two drivers for their similar feedback on the MCL60.

Piastri said Norris, already in his fifth season in F1, would be useful as a benchmark against which to pick up speed in his rookie season.

“I definitely learned a lot from Lando,” Piastri said. “It’s not just how the car is actually driven, but the way we do presentations and the attention to detail and so on.

“I think there’s always something to try and improve on. So it’s good to have him as a benchmark, of course.

“I think Lando has established himself as a quality driver over the course of his career, so even just working with him, I can see that.”

Lando Norris, McLaren, Oscar Piastri, McLaren, arriving at Parc Ferme

Photography: Steven Tee / motorsport pictures

Piastri echoed Norris’ comments about having complementary driving styles and handling requirements, which helped set the direction for the team.

“I think it’s similar to what Lando said, we’re working in a very similar way to what we want out of the car,” he agreed.

“I think we work in a very similar way, which is good for the team. It gives them a very clear direction for the engineering side of things.”

Piastri’s early performance has won praise from McLaren chief executive Zac Brown, who believes there are “early signs that Oscar will be at the same pace as Lando”, reflecting a weekend in Saudi Arabia where Piastri Terry was at least on par with his teammates.

In his Australian Grand Prix home race, the Melbourne native scored his first career F1 points finish in eighth, just behind Norris in sixth.

McLaren heads to its next race in Baku with its first major upgrade package that should address some launch-spec aerodynamic inefficiencies as the 2023 car has struggled with oversized struggle against resistance.