Oscar Piastri has announced changes to his Formula 1 support team as he prepares for the 2026 season, with McLaren driver Mark Webber stepping back from his trackside role. While Webber and Ann Neal will continue as Piastri’s managers, Webber’s presence during grand prix weekends will be reduced.
Replacing Webber trackside will be Petro Matos, who previously worked closely with Piastri as his race engineer during the 2021 Formula 2 championship and also collaborated with him in British Formula 4 in 2017. These adjustments come after a difficult second half of the 2025 season for Piastri, where he slipped from championship leader to finishing third behind teammate Lando Norris and Max Verstappen.
Piastri Explains Reasons Behind Team Changes
Speaking on the final day of F1 pre-season testing in Bahrain, Piastri clarified that the decision to alter his support structure was not triggered by a specific event but was a mutual choice to try a new approach.
“There wasn’t anything specific, we just made a decision for things to look a bit different,”
Piastri said during the Friday FIA press conference.
“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. So that’s really the extent of it. There was nothing specific that triggered it.”
Claims of McLaren’s Influence on Management Shift
After the announcement of Piastri’s revamped support network, former F1 driver Ralf Schumacher suggested that McLaren may have pushed for these changes to introduce more stability following a turbulent year.
“There’s a lot going on with Piastri anyway. With the new manager, Mark Webber was suddenly gone, and there was quite a lot of pressure there, too,”
Schumacher commented on the Backstage Boxengasse podcast.
“After last year, from what I’ve heard, it was very important to McLaren that Piastri had a different manager this year to bring more calm. So, there’s a lot going on right now.”
Podcast host Peter Hardenacke added that officially Webber’s role has shifted to focusing on contractual matters behind the scenes, while Matos will be the familiar face at race events.
Discussing past dynamics, Hardenacke noted,
“The relationship between Zak Brown and Mark Webber had cooled, so to speak.”
Significance of Changes for Piastri’s Future in F1
This reorganization of Oscar Piastri’s support crew, with veteran figure Mark Webber stepping back from track duties and returning a trusted race engineer like Petro Matos to a more prominent role, signals an attempt to reset after a challenging season. The move may provide Piastri with a more focused and familiar environment during race weekends as he aims to rebound and challenge more strongly in the upcoming seasons.
With tensions reportedly easing following shifts within McLaren’s management interactions, Piastri’s revised team structure could help him regain confidence and consistency on the track, impacting both his personal performance and the team’s overall success moving forward.
