One Aussie for another : F1 summer break drama continues as McLaren looks to replace Ricciardo with Piastri
Before this blog starts to look like a Formula 1 review website, let me clarify one thing — I am only a fan, not an expert. I intend to share my thoughts on a wide range of topics that curate my interest beyond work. The only reason I am posting two back to back articles on F1 is because silly season has spun out of control and the drama that has ensued beyond the grid, well, deserves it’s own Netflix show. Oh wait…
On the onset of Sebastian Vettel’s surprise retirement announcement followed by Fernando Alonso negotiating a deal to take Vettel’s seat at Aston Martin next year, Alpine was invariably promoting Oscar Piastri from reserve driver to an F1 seat next year. Most of us expected this as soon as Alonso’s departure was finalised and even rejoiced at the opportunity a top talent like Piastri would get at one of the best Formula 1 teams. Alpine released a public statement on Tuesday on the promotion but to everyone’s surprise Piastri took to his social media and publicly denounced being signed up for Alpine in 2023. In fact, the Australian went as far as to say “I will not be driving for Alpine next year.”
Yes, Piastri did win the Formula Renault, Formula 3 and Formula 2 championships — all in his rookie season from 2019–2021. But the guy has not even driven in Formula 1 yet and his public rejection of a top team took the F1 world by storm. Some found it gritty, others found it risqué but most fans and sports pundits were entertained at the drama that was ensuing. Rumour was already flying about that Piastri and his manager Mark Webber, another Australian and former F1 driver, were in conversation with McLaren to sign up for the 2023 season. One thing was for certain, top talent or not, if Piastri wasn’t 100% sure that he had a guaranteed F1 seat for next season, he couldn’t have been so bold and public with his rejection.
But if there were holes in Piastri’s Alpine contract, then how could the French team go ahead and publicly announce a driver who hadn’t even signed on the dotted line for them? Piastri’s camp was already disillusioned for months with the prospect of loaning out the driver to a bottom-of-the-grid team like Williams. It seems at the wake of Alonso’s surprise movement, Alpine panicked and tried to put some sort of pressure on Piastri and his team, to finally give him that coveted Alpine second seat. Former F1 driver Mark Webber, who also happens to be Piastri’s manager and the man behind his contract shock, was having none of it. FIA’s contract recognition board, where all F1 contracts are checked for validity, is said to have validated Piastri’s new contract with McLaren at the expense of his existing deal with Alpine which apparently doesn't tie him to the French squad beyond the current 2022 season.
At the time of writing this article, there has been no press release from Piastri or McLaren confirming or denying the move, but it’s safe to say this is where the future of the Australian and the team from Woking is headed. But what about the other Australian, who already has a valid contract with McLaren till end of 2023? Daniel Ricciardo doesn't require an introduction like Oscar Piastri does. He is one of the most popular and beloved drivers in Formula 1 and has been so for the past decade. In fact the honey badger’s popularity has soared even higher with his active participation in Netflix’s Drive to Survive and appearances in multiple American talk shows. The multiple grand prix winner also brought McLaren it’s first race win at Monza, Italy during the 2021 season.
Despite this, the past 18 months at McLaren has been far from the best for Ricciardo. Some say he has lost his mojo, others defend Ricciardo by saying that he has not lost his talent in less than two years. McLaren CEO Zak Brown by publicly talking about his stint being below expectations is not helping Ricciardo gain confidence either. He was one of the grid’s strongest performers in 2020 (back when he was racing for Alpine, then known as Renault) and there is a feeling that a change in the Formula 1 paddock might improve his form. With McLaren informing Ricciardo it intends to replace him with Formula 2 champion Oscar Piastri next season, where will he be off to next? Alpine team boss Otmar Szafnauer recently said he would have no objections with Ricciardo coming back to the team.
Alpine and McLaren being the two competitive mid-field teams are battling it out hard to have a strong drivers line up for the 2023 season. While McLaren is going for the young drivers route with Lando Norris and Oscar Piastri, Alpine currently finds itself embarrassingly short of one driver. Now only if the French team had asked their other driver Esteban Ocon to give up the position to Fernando Alonso during the Hungarian GP last Sunday, we may not have been in the midst of such extreme summer-break grid shuffling in the first place!
