Oscar Piastri's mum reveals the one thing she wishes her son wouldn't do if he is to challenge Max Verstappen to win the F1 Drivers' Championship

Daily Mail​

21-04-2025

Oscar Piastri 's mum, Nicole, wishes her son would be a little more risk-averse when attempting to take on Max Verstappen this season.
The Aussie driver zoomed his way to his third victory of the Formula One season on Sunday afternoon in Saudi Arabia and has now gone 10 points clear of Lando Norris at the top of the Driver Standings.
Verstappen placed second behind the McLaren driver after being handed a five-second penalty after he and Piastri battled for position at the very beginning of the race.
With the Dutchman taking pole position, with Piastri in second, the pair went wheel-to-wheel through the first two corners of the race, with Piastri standing firm and holding his position, ultimately forcing Verstappen off the track.
Racing stewards quickly issued the reigning champion with the penalty, judging that Verstappen had unfairly taken an advantage over the 24-year-old Aussie through the first chicane.
But Piastri's mother, Nicole, said she was 'horrified' by the moment.
'I kinda wish Oscar wouldn't hold his ground with someone like Max Verstappen,' she said, speaking to 4BC radio on Monday.
'That was horrifying, to be honest. But that's what he does and he will continue to do that.'
Since Oscar's rise to Formula One stardom, his mother, Nicole has also stolen headlines for her brilliant comments of support for her son on social media.
After he claimed victory at the Chinese Grand Prix, the 24-year-old had appeared in an Instagram reel published on McLaren's official account, playing a game alongside his team-mate Norris.
Nicole hilariously quipped in the comments section of the video: 'Once you're done playing games on your phone, Osc, do you think you could FaceTime me so I can congratulate you on your win in China?'
But while the young Aussie has been in epic form at the start of the 2025 season, his mum admitted that watching the races can be a very stressful experience.
'It's just the risk, and it's not so much Oscar, it's people around him,' she added.
'There is no sleeping when Oscar is racing at 300 kilometres per hour.
'He's very cautious by nature, and he's very calculated and clever in the way that he does everything.'
Nicole used the example of how her son's team-mate, Norris, had suffered a scary crash in qualifying after his car appeared to lose control after the Englishman drove over a kerb on the track.
'He took on Max at the first corner, which was a bit horrifying,' Nicole added.
'But typically, he won't take risks. But you can't trust that those around him won't miss.
'You just can't trust that those around him won't take risks.
'As we saw with Lando, a tiny mistake can be really dangerous. They are only human.
'It's nice that [Oscar's] doing well but my priority is just that he finishes the race and gets out of the car and walks away. If he finishes well that is just a bonus.'
Verstappen, meanwhile, admitted after the race that his battle with Piastri over the opening 100m of the race may have cost him victory in Jeddah.
'Yeah, potentially, it is what it is,' he said, when pressed if turn one had hampered his chances of winning.
He added in another interview: 'The start happened, turn one happened and suddenly it was lap 50 (the last lap). It just all went super fast,' the reigning world champion said.
'The problem is that I cannot share my opinion about it because I might get penalised also, you know, so it's better not to speak about it.'
Pressed on whether he was frustrated by having to bottle up his feelings on the matter, Verstappen responded: 'I think it's just the world we live in. You can't fully share your opinion because it's not appreciated, apparently, or people can't handle the full truth.
'For me, it's better if I don't need to say too much, it also saves my time, because we already have to do so much.
'It's honestly just how everything is becoming. Everyone is super sensitive about everything. And then, of course, what we have currently, we cannot be critical anyway. So, that's fine, less talking - even better for me.'
Meanwhile, Piastri's efforts this weekend saw him become the first Aussie to top the Driver Standings since Mark Webber in 2010.
'I'm very proud,' Nicole said of her son.