Oscar Piastri’s helicopter landed in Faenza on Via Calamelli shortly after 4 pm. Then, he got into a blue McLaren Artura Spider, which took him to Piazza del Popolo. After a brief visit to Faenza’s town hall, the driver greeted the city and even tried a few words in Italian. Finally, he posed for photos and signed autographs for a lucky few, including Lorenzo Bandini’s second cousin and her son.
At 4:24 pm, he got back into the McLaren, disappointing fans who had waited hours by the barriers to see him up close, and headed toward Brisighella. He drove along Corso Matteotti, Viale Marconi, Via Firenze, and the Brisighellese-Ravennate road, before arriving at the Venetian Fortress of Brisighella.
During the ceremony, several prominent figures from the Motor Valley world were honored: Riccardo Ceccarelli, founder of Formula Medicine; Davide Nicelli, rally driver; Giulia Toninelli, journalist at Gazzetta dello Sport; Gian Luca Garoffio, journalist at Rai Sport; Mario Isola, Pirelli Motorsport director; and Carlo Dall’Oppio, National Commander Emeritus of the National Firefighters Corps.
There was also a tribute to Gian Carlo Minardi, awarded for the 40th anniversary of the Minardi Team’s debut in F1. The Faenza-born manager was on stage when the surprise was announced and was visibly emotional when he received Andrea Folcri’s artwork depicting Piastri’s McLaren in action.
Meanwhile, Oscar remained seated with perfect composure, applauding quietly and shaking hands with cool determination. Even the usually calm institutions appeared more restless and nervous compared to the new Iceman.
Among the crowd was Mark Webber, Oscar’s manager and the 2006 Bandini Trophy winner. The former F1 driver kept a low profile but couldn’t resist the fans’ curiosity. He warmly greeted Gian Carlo Minardi, with whom he debuted in F1 in 2002, celebrating a fifth place — a podium finish — at his home Grand Prix in Melbourne.
In light of Piastri’s Italian roots—his great-great-grandfather Attilio left Tuscany in the early 1900s—the Municipality of Licciana Nardi awarded him a gold medal with the town’s emblem, inviting him to their village to grant him honorary citizenship. “Meeting locals from where the Piastri family comes from was a very special experience,” said the Australian driver.
The Bandini Trophy ceremony began with the Australian national anthem (“I hope it won’t be the only time we hear it this week!” Piastri joked). Then, speaker Boris Casadio read a message from Margherita Freddi, Lorenzo Bandini’s wife, addressed to the McLaren driver. Finally, association president Francesco Asirelli handed the Bandini Trophy to Oscar Piastri: “It’s a true honor to receive this award; it really means a lot to me,” commented the World Championship leader.
The day ended with a press conference where Piastri answered a variety of questions.
“Duels with Max Verstappen? We have a good car at the moment, so hopefully, we won’t have to duel much more for the rest of the season.”
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