So this whole thing started last weekend when I was rewatching the Monaco highlights – yeah, I do that sometimes with my morning coffee. Saw Piastri sticking right behind Webber through that tricky hairpin section and just thought, “Man, these two are kinda dancing together out there.”
Getting My Hands Dirty
First thing Tuesday morning, I dug out my old notebook – you know, that blue one with the oil stains from when I changed my bike’s filter last year. Grabbed my phone too since I knew I’d need race clips. Opened up Google Sheets because yeah, Excel’s too fancy for my taste.
Started punching in numbers:
Qualifying:
- Mark gets P5 average last 5 races
- Oscar? P6 on average. Crazy close
Overtakes:
- Webber makes 60% of passes on left corners
- Piastri waits for right-handers 70% of time
Almost spilled coffee on my keyboard when I noticed – when they’re both in top 6, they finish both in points 80% of races. That ain’t coincidence.
The Real Eye-Opener
Wednesday came and I was scrubbing through Suzuka footage frame by frame. Piastri gets held up by Sainz, Webber immediately radios “Tell Oscar I’ll back up Stroll for him”. Next lap? Webber slows Stroll just enough so Piastri slips through. No team orders, just… teammates reading each other’s minds.
Tripped over my charging cable around noon – that’s when the numbers clicked:
Total points when both finish: Almost double any other pairing not Red Bull. Their car ain’t fastest neither.
Wrapping It Up
Thursday night I’m sitting there with cold pizza thinking about my first racing team job. We had this veteran mechanic and a rookie data kid – same energy. Old hand creates space, new blood slots right in. That’s Webber and Piastri – one carves opportunities, the other executes without blinking. Doesn’t show up on raw speed charts but wins championships.
Put my notebook away covered in grease spots and soda rings. Stats never lie but sometimes? The real story’s in those radio silences when they just… know.
