The mysterious person photographed in the passenger seat of Formula One star Oscar Piastri’s McLaren sports car on the streets of Melbourne in January has been unmasked.

While many observers of the viral image thought the mystery man was Daniel Ricciardo, he has now been revealed as Piastri’s lifelong friend Christian Pancione, who will line up for his third Carrera Cup season with sponsorship from leading Australian and New Zealand automotive retailer Supercheap Auto.

The Piastri and Pancione families have been inextricably linked through their shared business and motorsport interests, with Oscar and Christian developing a close friendship that continues today.

With the Carrera Cup season kicking off at this weekend’s Australian Grand Prix, Pancione is excited to be racing at the same event as his best mate.

“It’s a massive weekend for Oscar, being the first time that he’s raced at his home Grand Prix, so it’s very cool that I get to compete at the same event as him,” Pancione said.

“He’s obviously going to be very busy, but hopefully, he’ll have some time to watch our Carrera Cup races, and then naturally, I’ll be cheering for him in the F1 race on Sunday afternoon.”

The 21-year-old is thrilled with the support from Supercheap Auto, which joins existing partners VCM Performance and HP Tuners on Pancione’s McElrea Racing Porsche 992 GT3 Cup car.

“Supercheap Auto has a long involvement in motorsport sponsorship, backing some of the highest-profile drivers, teams and events in Australia, so their support is a big boost for our 2023 program,” Pancione said.

During his time in Carrera Cup, Pancione has demonstrated his talents, achieving seven top-five finishes on his way to ninth in last year’s standings.

Supercheap Auto sponsorship manager Justin Murray has recognised his abilities.

“We are SUPER excited to partner with Christian Pancione in this year’s Porsche Paynter Dixon Carrera Cup Australia season,” Murray said.

“Christian has been super impressive coming through the junior ranks and is a future star.

“The Porsche Carrera Cup Series is a highly respected and successful category, and we’re pumped to make it super with Christian for the 2023 season.”

This weekend’s Carrera Cup season-opener at the Australian Grand Prix will consist of races on Thursday, Friday and Saturday, which can be seen live on Fox Sports 506.