Astonishing feat McLaren's Aussie gun Oscar Piastri could achieve before his 25th birthday

Oscar Piastri's climb to the top of the driver standings in Formula 1 has left Australian racing fans in awe.

The McLaren driver is on track to beat Daniel Ricciardo's eight career race wins before the 2025 season is complete. With the momentum Piastri currently enjoys, he might even be able to quickly leapfrog his now-manager Mark Webber, who won nine races throughout his career.

Having just turned 24, Piastri is steamrolling just about every Aussie driver who came before him, becoming the first to top the F1 driver standings since Alan Jones 45 years ago.

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Even then, Jones, who won the world championship in 1980 only put together 12 race wins over his 10 year career. With 18 grands prix still to be raced this season, Piastri could theoretically leapfrog to the top of the pile of Australian F1 drivers in just his second season as a full-time driver, with iconic figure and three-time world champion Jack Brabham currently leading the way with 14.

Piastri already has six race wins under his belt. He turns 25 in April next year.

Four of Piastri's wins have come during the first six races of the 2025 season with the Australian driver looking unstoppable at the front of the field at the moment.

The McLaren car is dominant this season like it's never been before. Piastri's third consecutive win, and fourth overall for the 2025 season, came in Miami at the weekend after battling his teammate Lando Norris as well as four-time world champion Max Verstappen to clinch the historic victory.

Piastri is the first McLaren driver since Mika Hakkinen to complete a hat-trick of grand prix wins.

The Australian also has 15 podiums with McLaren and two pole positions throughout his career, with Miami marking the 32nd weekend in his career of consecutive points-scoring, the fourth longest streak in the sport's history.

Piastri's move to McLaren at the end of the 2022 season ousted paddock favourite Ricciardo from his seat and his stunning rise since has more than justified that decision, as cut-throat as it seemed at the time.

Ricciardo scored 1322 points in his entire F1 career, spanning 13 years.

In just over two seasons, Piastri has scored nearly half that amount with 519.

The two Aussies co-existed on the grid together for little over a season, but Ricciardo always sung the younger driver's praises.

When asked about Piastri at their home grand prix in Melbourne, he said the McLaren driver was "an Aussie favourite."

"I couldn't get points [in Melbourne 2024], but Oscar did a great top four. He's a good kid. The more time I spend with him, I like him a lot, and happy that he's doing well for Aus," Ricciardo said.

Piastri has been vocal about being his own man alongside Ricciardo, telling Nine exclusively that he was not becoming a 'clone' of his McLaren predecessor.

Ricciardo became transcendent of the F1 driver status, the 'brand' of Danny Ric leading the Australian to become more successful with other off-track ventures.

With his clothing brand Enchante, multiple of his own wines stocked in Dan Murphy's and an invite to the exclusive Met Gala, Ricciardo's personality become the selling point for him after the rise of Netflix's Drive to Survive.

In comparison, Piastri is well known in the paddock for his calm and collected nature.

The exact antithesis of Ricciardo, he is an introverted driver who instead allows all of his talking to be done through his on-track success.

And it's working for him.

Only sixteen Australian drivers have started Formula 1 grands prix since 1950, and only two have gone on to become world champions - Jones and Brabham - but Piastri is putting himself in a strong position to contend as the third.

Piastri is the best thing to happen to Australian motorsport since Peter Brock was a household name at the peak of his powers in V8 Supercars.

When most of his fans weren't even alive to see Jones drive and take an Aussie F1 world championship, 24-year-old Piastri has a real chance at running away with this year's silverware.

F1 commentator Martin Brundle and 2009 world champion Jenson Button said after the Miami Grand Prix that Piastri had the "edge" over his teammate and that once "he gets in the lead he's formidable."

This means that 2025 could be a record-breaking season for the Aussie young gun with Piastri and Formula 1 back on the track at the Emilia Romagna Grand Prix in Imola next weekend.