Oscar Piastri's mum declares 'my heart can barely cope' after seeing son's new venture

Oscar Piastri’s mother was left with her heart in her mouth on Sunday after laying eyes on an image of her son atop Johann Zarco’s motorbike during MotoGP’s British Grand Prix weekend at Silverstone. 

The Australian driver is currently enjoying his summer break after an intense start to his maiden F1 campaign, but it has been impossible to keep Piastri away from the racetrack with the rookie opting to spend his first weekend off at the circuit rather than soaking up some summer sun.

Piastri took to Twitter to show off his experience at Silverstone on Sunday, posting a picture of himself perched on Zarco’s Pramac Racing Ducati bike in the garage with the caption: “On a break from 4 wheels so thought I’d have a go at 2 with @QuadLockCase."

McLaren’s young star made the short trip from the McLaren headquarters in Woking for the MotoGP action, watching from Zarco’s garage as the Frenchman crossed the line to take a relatively underwhelming P9 finish at the British GP.

McLaren’s young star made the short trip from the McLaren headquarters in Woking for the MotoGP action, watching from Zarco’s garage as the Frenchman crossed the line to take a relatively underwhelming P9 finish at the British GP.

Unfortunately for the rookie, his mother didn’t take too kindly to his two-wheeled antics, taking to Twitter to voice her concerns. She replied to her son’s original post, exclaiming: “Oh no you don’t!!! Move away from the bike Oscar Jack Piastri. My heart can barely cope with cars,” giving him the dreaded full-name treatment in the process.

This isn’t the first time Nicole Piastri has found herself in the headlines for her Twitter antics. F1’s new coolest parent endeared herself to fans earlier this season, taking to the platform after Oscar’s difficult Miami Grand Prix weekend with the comment: “On a positive note, my heart rate stayed relatively low for that race and I even managed a little nap in the middle there."

Fortunately for Mrs Piastri, her son is a safe pair of hands behind the wheel. After a trouble-free but muted start to the season, the 22-year-old has roared into form, producing impressive drives at Silverstone and the Hungaroring, before registering a finish behind championship leader Max Verstappen in the Belgian Grand Prix sprint race. 

The former F2 champion’s performances in the first half of the season mean that he heads into the summer break just a point behind tenth-placed Esteban Ocon in the standings ahead of the Dutch Grand Prix at the end of this month. 

After dramatically outperforming fellow rookies Nyck de Vries and Logan Sargeant, Piastri is living up to the hype that inspired Zak Brown to oust Daniel Ricciardo and place him in a race seat for the 2023 season, and proving he is here to stay at the front of the F1 grid.