Oscar Piastri reminds F1 legend Alain Prost of himself: “A little like me”

4x F1 world champion Alain Prost has offered high praise to Oscar Piastri, claiming that the McLaren driver reminds him of himself. The Frenchman highlighted being impressed by Piastri's race craft and intelligence on track.

In just his third season in F1, Oscar Piastri is locked in a championship battle with teammate Lando Norris. He also seemed to be calmer and relaxed about it than his settled teammate at the start of the season, having won four of the first six races in 2025.

Now, F1 legend Alain Prost has showered Piastri in praise, complimenting his race craft and temperament. The 70-year-old also claimed that the young Aussie reminded him of himself.

Speaking about Piastri at the Goodwood Festival of Speed, Prost said:

"I like the way he behaves. It's a little like me, thinking about when to do the right manoeuvre for overtaking and being a little bit more clever. I like him."

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Prost served as a non-executive director at Alpine during the time Piastri was coming through the ranks at the Renault junior academy. The former world champion saw Piastri's rise through the lower formulae, and has followed his professional career from the very beginning.

Oscar Piastri has a golden opportunity to win a world championship of his own this season. The driver leads the championship by eight points at the halfway stage of the season, having claimed five wins and a further five podiums.

But teammate Lando Norris seems to be bringing the fight with more intensity in recent weeks. The Briton has significantly closed the gap to Piastri in the last few races, having won three of the last five.

Alain Prost persuaded Alpine to sign Oscar Piastri into their academy

Oscar Piastri poses in Alpine overalls in April 2022 - Source: Getty

Alain Prost has revealed that he was the one to persuade Alpine to sign Oscar Piastri into their driver development program, after having followed his career since before his F3 days.

Speaking at Goodwood, Prost explained that Renault did not want to bring Piastri into their setup, until he pushed for the move to happen.

“I know Oscar much better because I was the one to push Renault to bring him in, in the academy a long time ago, they did not want to," said Prost. [via PlanetF1]

“I saw him driving in Formula 3, or even before, and then Formula 2," he added.

Piastri won the F3 and F2 championships in consecutive years in 2020 and 2021. He was then signed as Alpine's reserve F1 driver for 2022, before the French team announced that he would be driving for them in 2023.

Huge drama followed, as Piastri denied having signed a contract via X [then Twitter], expressly claiming that he will not be driving for Alpine in 2023. He ended up signing for McLaren instead, replacing his fellow countryman Daniel Ricciardo.

About the author

Samyak Sharma is a Motorsports journalist at Sportskeeda, covering Formula One and IndyCar. A graduate in Mass Media and Journalism, he aims to transform his lifelong passion for playing and following sports into a thriving career in sports journalism. He believes that sports naturally deliver the most compelling stories, needing no script to captivate the world.

Samyak is dedicated to providing detailed and insightful coverage, keeping an eye on all developments on and off the track to ensure timely and accurate reporting. He closely follows Max Verstappen, inspired by the Dutchman's ability to balance precision and aggression on the track.

Samyak envisions the continued growth of motorsports globally and hopes to see Formula One return to the V8 engines while still continuing to be sustainable. As for IndyCar, he envisions greater international exposure to rival the global reach of F1.

Outside the world of motorsports, Samyak immerses himself in his love for football and cricket, passionately cheering for his favorite team, Manchester United. He also enjoys catching the occasional tennis match, broadening his appreciation for sports.

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Edited by Mitali