Otmar Szafnauer reveals Alpine’s plan to sue for legal damages in case they lose Oscar Piastri for 2023 F1 season
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Otmar Szafnauer
Otmar Szafnauer the Alpine team Principal has been left scratching his head during the in-progress summer break and it has been down to the actions of the team’s reserve driver Oscar Piastri.
At the start of the summer break, Fernando Alonso announced that he has moved to Aston Martin for the 2023 F1 season and from then onward the Alpine team took the liberty to announce that they have promoted Oscar Piastri to race alongside Esteban Ocon next year.
However, things took an unprecedented turn when the 21-year-old publicly dismissed the Enstone-based team’s statement and said that he will not drive for them next year.
Oscar Piastri is a highly rated driver that has come through the junior ranks in recent years and his list of accolades is proof enough of the skills that he possesses behind the wheel of a racing car.
Piastri won the Eurocup in 2019 and from then onward won the Formula 3 and Formula 2 Championship in consecutive years. While Alpine was looking to secure him for 2023, Mark Webber the Manager of Piastri was working hard behind the scenes to get him a seat at McLaren for next year.
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Otmar Szafnauer indicates the heavy investment that they have made in the career of Oscar Piastri
Oscar has been with Alpine for several years and has got the support at every step of the way and thus, the Alpine hierarchy expected some loyalty from Oscar which he clearly did not show.
Otmar Szafnauer while talking about the depressing situation has said, “We have a contract that requires us to support him in his career up to Formula 1 by investing a lot of money. But, above all, we have to take into account the fact that last year we put him on a single-seater and he did 3,500 kilometers. We did seven independent tests with him, certainly not a cheap program.“
“The cost of the engine alone is 1,750,000 euros. Then we have to consider the mechanics, the team that managed the tests, the flights, and the trips. We have spent a lot of money on Piastri to prepare him for his future in F1. And if that future is not with us, it is logical and right to ask for compensation.”
Alpine is shocked by the actions of the young Australian given the huge investment that they made in him and now with the legality of the contract being looked at by both parties, it is going to be interesting to see how the Piastri saga is going to develop going ahead into the season.
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