How Oscar Piastri started his F1 career on the go-karting circuit

Supercars stars have lifted the bonnet on their experience racing against Aussie F1 star Oscar Piastri back in their early karting days.

Piastri, like most F1 drivers, started his journey to motorsport glory on the karting track, learning the skills essential for racing, including steering, braking and cornering* at high speeds.

Karting has surged in popularity in recent years, with statistics from Karting Australia showing a 16 per cent increase in participation in 2023 as more kids get involved in the fast-paced and exciting sport that for a gifted few can lead to a career in racing.

Australian motorsports racing driver Bryce Fullwood also started his racing career in karting. He described Piastri as a “wildly fast” young driver whose “cool, calm and collected” personality hasn’t changed on the path to Formula 1.

Fullwood fondly recalled his karting days with Piastri and karting guru James Sera before Piastri made the move to Europe to further his motorsport career.

“We probably raced three years together and we were teammates, both racing with James Sera at the time. We did a lot of racing together,” Fullwood said.

“When you are racing go-karts, it is much more than just racing. You stay at the same hotel, you all go out to dinner together, so we spent a lot of time with them and Oscar’s family.

“There were a lot of weekends away racing …. he’s a really good guy and I feel lucky to have had those memories with him.”

While Piastri’s motorsport journey was then in its early days, Fullwood said the raw speed and characteristics that now have the Melbourne-born racer in the hunt for the Formula 1 world title were already clear.

“Oscar has not changed much for those that know him. He has always been a very cool, calm and collected character,” Fullwood said.

“He was still learning, but he was always very fast. His race craft at the time when he was young, he would be wildly fast and if he got out in front and people gave him some time to relax and get himself under control, they wouldn’t see which way he went.

“But he often got gobbled up in the pack because he wasn’t a very aggressive racer early on in his karting days. But he was definitely fast.

“The biggest thing I found with Oscar, compared to anyone else I raced with, is he was always looking for speed even when he thought there wasn’t any to be found.

“I could follow him around the racetrack and he would be all good and then the next lap, he would just go faster through a corner and then fly straight off the road.

“I’m like, ‘What are you doing, Oscar?’ And not a little bit off the road, I’m talking three metres off the road … I think it’s because he was second guessing himself to go, ‘Can I go faster?’”

Now in his third season in F1, Piastri holds a 16-point lead in the championship standings over his McLaren teammate Lando Norris after winning four of the first six Grand Prix.

Piastri has drawn praise for his mental strength and no-nonsense approach to his racing from rivals and commentators alike and Fullwood said the driver fans see on the broadcast was exactly the same as a young go-karter.

KARTING AROUND AUSTRALIA
If you are keen to give karting a go, there are tracks and clubs all over Australia. If it’s casual lessons you are after, your local track may offer some for your age group. But if you want to join a club and get into the nitty gritty of go-karting regularly, the Karting Australia website has an interactive map that lets you search for a club near you. It also has information about safety checks and how to get a drivers license, which is essential for anyone who drives a kart on a Karting Australia licensed track. Visit karting.net.au for more information.

CLUBS IN THE CAPITALS
Sydney
Greater Sydney Cart Club
Butterfly Farm, 446 Wilberforce Rd, NSW

Melbourne
Go Kart Club of Victoria
100 Todd Rd, Port Melbourne, VIC

Oakleigh Go Kart Racing Club
Deals Road Reserve, Deals Rd, Clayton South VIC

Adelaide
Southern Go Kart Club
21-51 Robinson Rd, Bolivar SA

Go Kart Club of South Australia
3711 Old Princess Highway, Monarto SA

Perth
Tiger Kart Club
570 Wattle Ave East, Neerabup WA

Hobart
Southern Tasmanian Kart Club
616 Fingerpost Rd, Orielton TAS

Darwin
Darwin Karting Association
Hidden Valley Rd, Hidden Valley NT

There are also different clubs based on age and interest, including cadets (ages 6-12), juniors (ages 12-15), seniors (16+), girls and 4SS karts, which are designed for newcomers and focuses on “low cost, low maintenance, simplicity, and fun for all ages.”

POLL

GLOSSARY

• cornering: driving around corners without losing much speed
• 4SS karts: 4 stroke sprint karts, a less powerful engine than the 2 stroke engines traditionally used on go-karts. 4SS karts are popular with beginners wanting to learn karting on a lower cost, low maintenance kart

EXTRA READING
Piastri goes viral after Miami F1
Grand Prix crowns new F1 king
Meet top young kart racing talent

QUICK QUIZ
1. Which karting legend did Bryce Fullwood and Oscar Piastri race with?
2. What characteristics did Piastri have as a kart racer that he still has today?
3. How much did karting grow in participation during 2023?
4. What skills do kids learn when they drive go-karts?
5. How many Grand Prix has Piastri won this season?

LISTEN TO THIS STORY

CLASSROOM ACTIVITIES
1. Design a go-kart track
On an A4 or A3 sheet of grid paper, design a karting track that you think would be exhilarating to drive on. It should include at least four right turns, four left turns and a straight section for reaching top speed. Remember to include a pit lane where the karts stop between races.

Add colour and detail to your design to show what it would look like if constructed. Your track could be an indoor or outdoor track with any theme you like.

Time: allow 30 minutes to complete this activity
Curriculum Links: Mathematics, Design and Technologies

2. Extension
Estimate or calculate the distance that one full lap of your track would be, if your plan has a scale of 1:1000 (1cm = 10m).

Give an explanation of how you went about finding your answer and show any calculations you have made.

Time: allow 10 minutes to complete this activity
Curriculum Links: Mathematics

VCOP ACTIVITY
To sum it up
After reading the article, use your comprehension skills to summarise in a maximum of three sentences what the article is about.

Think about:

• What is the main topic or idea?
• What is an important or interesting fact?
• Who was involved (people or places)?

Use your VCOP skills to re-read your summary to make sure it is clear, specific and well punctuated.