Stella praises Piastri for his impressive form

Following another impressive showing at last Sunday's Canadian Grand Prix, McLaren team boss Andrea Stella has hailed Oscar Piastri for having stepped up his game and having been constantly delivering a stellar performance since the start of the season.

McLaren team boss Andrea Stella rued the first safety car in last Sunday's wild race of Montreal as it was called at the worst possible moment for the British outfit. The team's two drivers Lando Norris and Oscar Piastri displayed a dominant performance on the drying track, but their progress was halted by the SC interruption that neutralized the race.

Despite missing out on a possible victory, Andrea Stella took delight in his team's form in Montreal on a track which had not played to their strengths in the past.

“As expected, we had an entertaining and exciting Canadian Grand Prix. The field has compressed, and the competition is very tight. With the variable weather today, it meant several drivers were favourites for the win at different stages of the race and it’s important that

"Lando was one of those. This is the key message we take away from Montréal: McLaren is competitive, able to take podiums and compete for victory in different conditions.

The Italian praised his Australian driver Oscar Piastri, who had some difficulties to overcome in his debut season last year, but managed to up his game for this year, showing eye-catching qualifying pace and a much better tyre management in races.

“The timing of the Safety Car was a little unfortunate for Lando, because it came when his pace was very strong and he was in the lead, opening a large gap, but this is racing and we won’t dwell on it. He drove a very good race. Oscar was very strong also. It’s great to see him in his second season fighting for podiums.

“Our focus has to be on improving the car and improving our operations so that we can consistently be at the front like we were here in Canada. We take home a big haul of points, once again more than our rivals, and consider this a positive outcome. My thanks to the team for another big effort this weekend, and on we go to Spain.”