Robert Shwartzman exposes Ferrari's F1 'politics'; addresses Oscar Piastri's Indy 500 fear

Robert Shwartzman took a historic pole position in Indy 500 qualifying on Sunday (May 18). He became the first rookie to win pole in 43 years. In an interview after the session, the PREMA Racing driver spoke about his past with Ferrari's F1 program and McLaren driver Oscar Piastri's fear of racing in IndyCar.

During F1's Miami GP weekend, Piastri addressed a question about potentially competing in the Indy 500 one day.

"No, not for me," he bluntly replied during an interaction at the Miami F1 paddock. "Firstly, you know, my kind of dream and goal has always been to race in F1, so I'm very happy with where I am, but also those guys are crazy!" he added.

Robert Shwartzman, who was Piastri's teammate in F2 at PREMA, was asked about the McLaren driver's fear of competing in the Indy 500. He justified Piastri's stance by saying (via Jeff Gluck):

"I was and I am scared of this. Like, you have to be scared of this track. You have to respect the Indy 500. You still have to have this knowledge and feeling that this track can damage a lot. So you have to know that, respect it, and keep it under control. So from my side, I was rewarded by Indy that I managed to keep it under control under this thin line of balance."

After praising Oscar Piastri for outclassing him in the 2021 F2 championship, Robert Shwartzman explained how he wanted a 'rematch' with him. Unfortunately, the Ferrari junior couldn't make it to F1, and as per the IndyCar driver, it was because of the Scuderia's internal 'politics'.

"I said to Oscar, 'I want a rematch. I want to go again.' Unfortunately, I didn't get the opportunity to go to F1 which I'd really hoped for. I was waiting there, being reserved for Ferrari, but still never happened that they would allow me to go in for... let's be honest, for political reasons, mainly."

Ferrari signed Shwartzman to its F1 driver academy in 2021 when Mattia Binotto was Team Principal. However, a promotion to a full-time seat never materialized. Even after team leadership changed, with Frederic Vasseur replacing Binotto, the Israeli-Russian driver's future at the team seemed bleak.

In November 2024, Shwartzman announced his IndyCar move with PREMA Racing and left Ferrari.

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How a visit to F1's Monaco GP made Robert Shwartzman notice the Indy 500's greatness

Robert Shwartzman after clinching pole for the 109th running of the Indianapolis 500 - Source: Getty

Robert Shwartzman competed against the best of today's F1 drivers during his time in the European open-wheel ladder. During his time in the Formula Renault Series in 2017, Shwartzman raced on the streets of Monaco on the same weekend as F1's Monaco GP.

In a recent interview with Motorsport after clinching his maiden Indy 500 pole, the 25-year-old recalled that weekend. He was "invited into a yacht with my friends and sponsors" to watch the Monaco GP. Incidentally, that was the first time he also watched the Indy 500, which takes place on the same day.

"After the Monaco Grand Prix, I remember just watching the Indy 500 and it was so, so much fun. There [were] so many battles, and until the last corner, you didn’t know who was going to be the winner."

Robert Shwartzman will lead the 33-driver Indy 500 grid to green at 12:45 pm ET on May 25, approximately two hours after F1 crowns a race winner in Monaco.