Alpine F1 team witnessed a massive debacle within its garage as Fernando Alonso left the team and Oscar Piastri refused to drive for them.
The 2022 silly season kicked off with Alpine’s Fernando Alonso replacing Sebastian Vettel at Aston Martin next season. Shocked by the sudden move by Alonso, Alpine announced their reserve driver Oscar Piastri as the Spaniard’s replacement only to get rejected by the Australian.
This resulted in a massive kerfuffle within the French team as it sought to keep Piastri from moving to another team. Alpine defended its case by saying that it had spent an awful lot of money on Piastri’s development.
At the time, Piastri was rumoured to be eyeing Daniel Ricciardo’s seat at McLaren which looked quite vulnerable. So, the French team threatened to sue Piastri for $10 Million as the saga headed to the Contract Recognition Board(CRB).
The debate at CRB went on for weeks until it was finally decided that Piastri will eventually drive for McLaren.
Also Read: Pierre Gasly surprised by F2 champion refusing French giants for 2023 seat
Alpine incurred a bill of $500,000 because of Piastri
So far there have been no updates about whether or not Alpine received any compensation in the matter. However, an F1 journalist has revealed that the French team itself spent $500,000 in legal bills in the Piastri fiasco.
Moreover, as CRB declared its decision, it has come to light that McLaren had signed the F2 champion on the 4th of July.
Ricciardo had been informed that a contract for his compatriot is being finalised by the Woking-based team. Yet, Ricciardo didn’t hesitate to publicly show his loyalty to McLaren.
On July 13, when rumours of Ricciardo getting forced out of McLaren mounted, the Australian announced that he is committed to McLaren till the end of his contract.
Also Read: Daniel Ricciardo knew he’ll be forced out of his $15 Million job right after British Grand Prix
