Australia F1 Star Oscar to Piastry for inspiration before WTC final

Ahead of the World Test Championship Final, Australian cricket team have turned to another sport to gather some inspiration. The defending champions met up with Formula 1 ace Oscar Piastri last week in Woking. They dived into the world of fast cars and high performance. Piastri himself is chasing an F1 World Championship later this year and is a lifelong cricket fan.

Nathan Lyon, Australia, visit McLaren HQ before WTC Final 2025

Australia players and staff took a pit stop at the McLaren headquarters ahead of the WTC Final on Wednesday. As per cric.com.au, the Australian contingent were given a full tour of the facilities in Woking. The two sports teams are swapping high-performance insights. McLaren is currently leading the F1 standings and even traded technical knowledge with renowned team principal Andrea Stella.

Lyon, who enjoys a friendship with Oscar Pisatri, then took on the F1 star in a simulation of the British Silverstone track. The Ace spinner was joined by Brendan Doggett, Usman Khawaja, Mitchell Starc and Sam Konstas on the sim, with the Melbourne Grand Prix also on the agenda. Lyon admitted that it was special to get ‘life lessons’ from a 24-year-old Piastri.

“It was really special to go there and see what the best F1 team at the moment is doing behind the scenes where a lot of people don’t get access to. To become mates with Oscar and see the way goes about it, to follow his career closely now and jump on the sim behind him was a life lesson to me to not change gears and put it straight in the wall,” Lyon added.

It is not the first collaboration between Piastri and the Australian cricket team. The Melbourne-born F1 star first brushed shoulders with the Test team during the 2023 Ashes at Lord’s. He also visited the team during the Boxing Day Test against India at the MCG. He unfortunately won’t be available for the WTC Final starting on Wednesday. Piastri will be in Canada, racing alongside teammate Lando Norris.