Oscar Piastri to replace Daniel Ricciardo at McLaren claims RacingNews365 as the Australian snubs his parent team amidst announcement-gate.
The 2021 F2 champion Oscar Piastri caused a huge stir in F1 media when he outright rejected Alpine’s claim of getting their F1 seat. It started after the French team announced it declared that Piastri would be racing for them in 2023, replacing Fernando Alonso.
But soon after, Piastri released his own comments on social media, stating Alpine didn’t take his consent before announcing. Moreover, he also claimed that he would not be racing for Alpine next year.
This all came amidst the reports that Piastri is in talks with McLaren to replace his compatriot Daniel Ricciardo. And now, a report by RacingNews365 states that Piastri is on the verge of joining the Woking-based team.
Piastri, Palou and Daniel Ricciardo in the 2nd McLaren car next year pic.twitter.com/cO0SHCwPHM
— AnythingF1 (@AnythingF1_) August 4, 2022
The source says: “That Piastri has signed a contract at McLaren that would see him partner Lando Norris and replace compatriot Riccardo at the Woking squad in 2023.”
“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,” it further said.
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Alpine can’t stop Oscar Piastri
It is understood that Piastri had a contract with Alpine until 2022. Though the French team had the option of extending it but seems Piastri wasn’t on the board.
Therefore, legally Piastri can’t be stopped by Alpine. Meanwhile, the latter would be in trouble to replace Alonso with whom. So far, Ricciardo, who seems to be ousted by McLaren, seems to be the prime candidate.
Ricciardo represented Alpine’s erstwhile name Renault back in the 2019 and 2020 seasons. It was a stepping-up spell for them as Ricciardo brought them back on the podium after a decade.
Meanwhile, Nico Hulkenberg, who also vied for Renault back in 2019, is available. It remains to be seen what Alpine will do in the upcoming days.
Also read: Alpine prioritized Esteban Ocon’s salary over 2-time World Champion’s
