Christian Horner Backs Oscar Piastri for Strong 2026 Comeback

Former Red Bull boss Christian Horner has publicly backed Oscar Piastri to come back stronger from the disappointment of losing the 2025 Formula 1 world championship, predicting the McLaren driver will be "fully motivated" and improve with experience.

Why it matters:

Piastri's late-season collapse after leading the standings was one of the major stories of 2025, testing the young Australian's mental fortitude. Endorsement from a figure like Horner, who has managed multiple world champions, adds significant weight to the belief that Piastri has the capacity to learn from the setback and mount another title challenge.

The details:

• Piastri held a 34-point lead over teammate Lando Norris after the Dutch Grand Prix, the 15th race of the 2025 season.
• A poor run of form in the final third of the year allowed Norris to overtake him, with the Briton ultimately winning the title by 13 points.
• Horner, appearing on Australian television, stated the experience "will have hurt him, and ultimately motivated him."
• He emphasized Piastri's relative inexperience, noting, "You forget the guy’s only done a couple of seasons in Formula 1. He’s so relatively inexperienced that I think he’s just going to get better and better."

What's next:

All eyes will be on Piastri's start to the 2026 season to gauge his response to last year's heartbreak. Meanwhile, Horner is set to begin a speaking tour in Australia, offering fans behind-the-scenes insights into his long career in the sport, including his experiences working with Australian drivers.