Mark Webber reacts to Oscar Piastri ‘battle scar’ after Australian Grand Prix crash
Former Red Bull race winner Mark Webber acts as the manager of McLaren driver Oscar Piastri
Mark Webber, the manager of Oscar Piastri, says “battle scars are part of the journey” after the McLaren driver crashed ahead of last weekend’s Australian Grand Prix.
Piastri failed to start his home race in Melbourne last weekend following an accident on the pre-race reconnaissance lap.
Mark Webber on Oscar Piastri crash: ‘Battle scars are part of the journey’
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The McLaren driver lost control of his MCL40 on exit of Turn 4 before hitting the wall and destroying the front-right corner of his car.
Piastri later told PlanetF1.com and other media outlets that “a big element of that was me”, yet pointed to an unexpected and “not insignificant” 100-kilowatt power surge from his Mercedes engine at Turn 4.
As revealed by PlanetF1.com on Tuesday, Piastri reported to McLaren over team radio moments before his accident that his battery was “completely empty” less than three corners after leaving the pit lane.
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Taking to Instagram’s story function, which allows images and video clips to be posted for a maximum 24-hour period, Webber commented that Piastri’s accident was simply part of the ups and downs of an athlete’s career.
He wrote: “Battle scars are part of the journey.”
Webber’s message was accompanied by an emoji of an arm being flexed.
Webber was on the ground in Melbourne last weekend, appearing as a pundit for British broadcaster Channel 4.
As reported by PlanetF1.com last month, Webber is set to reduce his trackside commitments in 2026 as he focuses on commercial and contractual matters.
It comes after Piastri added Pedro Matos, his race engineer from his title-winning F2 season in 2021, to his inner circle ahead of the new season.
Matos is set to attend most, if not every round, of the F1 2026 season with the Piastri camp, with Webber travelling to a select number of races.
His role within the Piastri camp remains unchanged.
Speaking during pre-season testing in Bahrain last month, Piastri said of Webber’s reduced trackside role: “There wasn’t anything specific [behind it]. We just made a decision for things to look a bit different.
“Mark is still very much involved and I’ve been in contact with him a lot over the last few weeks. He just won’t be trackside as much anymore.
“That’s really the extent of it. There’s nothing specific that triggered it.”
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