Among the young rookie drivers, who are going to take the stage at Formula 1 next year, is Oscar Piastri. The young Australian will replace outgoing Daniel Ricciardo at McLaren. The move away from Alpine was far from straightforward, and now Otmar Szafnauer has taken a dig at his former reserve driver.

Alpine roped Oscar in as a reserve driver after his impressive championship-winning season in F2. The Enstone-based team intended to promote Oscar to the regular driver’s role in 2023, but McLaren was swift to make the move first. The Contract Recognition Board (CRB) ruled in McLaren’s favor and gave the move legitimacy.

Otmar Szafnauer praises Pierre Gasly while taking a dig at Piastri

After Oscar Piastri’s switch to McLaren, Alpine brought Pierre Gasly in as Fernando Alonso’s replacement. The transfer became a long saga as AlphaTauri only let Gasly go once they reached an agreement with Nyck de Vries. Alpine team principal Otmar Szafnauer, however, now feels things worked out well for them in the end.

Motorsport quoted Szafnauer saying, “Look, let’s see how we do next year. I’m happy that our driving pairing with Esteban [Ocon] and Pierre is better than it would have been if we had won that case.”

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“[Gasly is] more experienced, still young. And time will tell, but I think faster.”

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While most teams try to maintain a combination of one young and one experienced driver, McLaren will feature both inexperienced drivers next year. The rationale behind maintaining the combination is for the experienced driver to help develop the car and the young driver to hone their skills for the long run.

Oscar Piastri reveals the reason behind McLaren’s move

Oscar Piastri appeared for an interview with the Pitstop podcast last month. The Australian driver talked about his interests and hobbies away from the track. He also opened up on McLaren’s bid to field two youthful drivers next season with an ambitious Lewis Hamilton comparison.

When asked whether McLaren’s move could be a recipe for disaster, Oscar replied, “Yeah, agreed. I think for me that’s been a massive draw card of McLaren was they really really wanted me. They wanted to invest in youth. They’ve shown that through their previous years with people like Lando, like Lewis.”

“So, I think it’s sort of been in the team’s spirit and mentality. I think it’s nice to have two young guys in there that can hopefully build the future and move forward with McLaren.”

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Where do you think Piastri will end up in drivers’ standing next season? Will the Woking-based outfit’s gamble pay off?