Compared to some of his more publicly charismatic compatriots to have raced in F1, Australian rookie Piastri appeared notably guarded whenever he was dealing with the media last season.
Rather than reveal any off-track inexperience by over-sharing, being too self-deprecating or ending up in a protracted war of words with a rival driver, Piastri seemed totally unflappable.
Some may have taken that measured approach to indicate a lack of personality, that Piastri was the latest young driver to have been PR polished to a fault on his way up the FIA F2 and F3 ranks.
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However, speaking to Autosport, Piastri says he very much is taking a ride on an emotional rollercoaster but he saves those rare flareups for when the doors are shut.
Challenged about coming across as guarded and rarely offering a killer soundbite, he replies: “I would say I'm very self-critical. For me, there's just not any point, especially in self-deprecation, destroying yourself in front of the media. If you want to do that on your own, then sure.”
Piastri isn’t one to lock himself in a hotel room after a bad day, turn up the volume on a particularly sad playlist and wallow. Instead, he channels his anger into finding solutions.
“For me, just trying to find answers to things is the most important thing,” he continues. “There's been some difficult sessions, some difficult races. But, and I think this also comes across in my radio, there's no point getting upset or emotional about things you can't control.
Source: Autosport