“It’s a brave move by Oscar Piastri”– Nico Rosberg thinks $1.5 Million F1 driver will lose his seat if unable to beat Lando Norris

Tanish Chachra | 22/09/2022
"It’s a brave move by Oscar Piastri"– Nico Rosberg thinks $1.5 Million F1 driver will lose his seat if unable to beat Lando Norris

Nico Rosberg thinks Oscar Piastri has made a bold move to McLaren but can lose his seat if he doesn’t beat Lando Norris next year.

Oscar Piastri caused huge headlines when he refused to drive for Alpine even after the French team officially announced him as Fernando Alonso’s replacement.

The later revelations unfolded that Piastri was already in agreement with McLaren. This saga ended with a case being heard in front of the Contract Regulatory Board (CRB), a part of the FIA.

And Alpine almost paid accumulated $500,000 together to McLaren and Piastri. Therefore, it shows that Piastri had a long battle to be with McLaren. But the former F1 champion Nico Rosberg thinks it’s a risky move for the Australian.

According to him, Piastri can be axed from the team if he doesn’t beat Lando Norris. However, he also accepts that McLaren’s opportunities don’t come daily.

“It’s a brave move by Oscar, it is,” Rosberg told Sky F1. “It is either he beats Lando or he’s out basically of the sport, so it’s tough, but he believes in himself. And if you think you’re that good, you’ve got to go for it.”

“For Oscar, if you’re a young driver and you have the opportunity to race for McLaren, and you’re free to do so, you have to take it. Opportunities like that don’t come around all the time, so he’s done everything right.”

Also read: Valtteri Bottas reveals Lewis Hamilton’s fight with Mercedes’ tech

Nico Rosberg is a fan of Lando Norris

It’s no secret that Rosberg is a fan of Norris. The German race driver, before the 2022 season, also mentioned Norris as one of the future world champion material.

So far, Norris hasn’t received the opportunity to vie for the title. But he surely has given reasons to term him as a special prospect and can do better if given the right resources.

Norris didn’t have an extraordinary year because of McLaren’s slump this year. He stands P7 in the drivers’ standings with 88 points in the table. Though, he has done better than his teammate Daniel Ricciardo, who is on his way out from the Woking-based team this year.

Right now, Daniel Ricciardo has no options for the next year. The Australian race driver also contemplates a sabbatical while his compatriot will replace him at McLaren.

Also read: NASCAR team owner welcomes 8 GP winning driver following McLaren exit

Post Edited By: Tanish Chachra
Lando Norris McLaren Nico Rosberg Oscar Piastri

About the author

Tanish Chachra

Tanish Chachra is the Motorsport editor at The SportsRush. He saw his first race when F1 visited India in 2011, and since then, his romance with the sport has been seasonal until he took up this role in 2020. Reigniting F1's coverage on this site, Tanish has fallen in love with the sport all over again. He loves Kimi Raikkonen and sees a future world champion in Oscar Piastri. Away from us, he loves to snuggle inside his books.

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