Oscar Piastri ready for Australian grand prix after "ticking boxes" in Jeddah

McLaren driver Oscar Piastri says he is ready for the race weekend in Australia after "ticking boxes" in the Saudi Arabian grand prix.

Oscar Piastri during the Saudi Arabian grand prix. (McLaren Racing)

The Australian shared his excitement at going into his home grand prix as fan favourite.

“It's great to be heading to Melbourne…"

"I grew up in the suburbs of the city and it is a special feeling to be returning as an F1 driver."

"It's set to be a fantastic atmosphere and I can’t wait to get there and be a part of it.

The Australian Grand Prix Corporation has heavily promoted Piastri's involvement, hoping the home crowd will harbour no bad feelings for him after he replaced countryman Daniel Ricciardo at McLaren.

"I’m really looking forward to seeing all of the home crowd and all of the papaya fans," said Piastri.

"This will be the first time that I've raced at Albert Park and I’m sure it will be an experience that I remember."

Piastri comes into the grand prix on the rise after an engine failure took him out of the season opener.

He qualified well in Jeddah but finished the grand prix in P15.

Despite finishing out of the points, the local boy says he can take a lot from the Saudi race.

"Securing a starting position of P8 in my second-ever F1 quali and ticking another box by finishing a full grand prix was extremely satisfying… although Sunday was not seamless."

"There is a long way to go this season."

"We’ll keep on pushing hard as a team and my learning curve continues."

The Formula 1 Australian Grand Prix gets underway on Friday with free practice at 12.30pm.

Qualifying is at 4pm on Saturday before lights out for the grand prix at 3pm on Sunday.

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