As the 2022 season was unfolding, Sebastian Vettel announced his retirement, starting a chain reaction of driver changes. While Daniel Ricciardo and McLaren decided to part ways, Fernando Alonso announced his switch from Alpine to replace Vettel at Aston Martin. This left a vacant second seat at the Enstone team, which Alpine announced would be taken over by Oscar Piastri. Or so it thought.

Within a few hours of the announcement, Piastri –  Alpine’s reserve driver in 2022 – took to social media to deny the claim. A month later, the Australian signed with McLaren instead, leaving Alpine without looking back. Seeing as Alpine spent its resources on Piastri to help him grow, the Enstone team was inclined to file a lawsuit against him. But Otmar Szafnauer soon said, “For me, with Oscar not coming to our team and appointing Pierre Gasly, that could work out even better. There’s no need for a lawsuit.” But now, the former Alpine Team Principal revealed what exactly happened behind the scenes.

Oscar Piastri narrowly escaped Alpine’s questioning

During a recent chat with former Ferrari General Manager Peter Windsor, Szafnauer opened up about the whole contract saga. He explained that Alpine honored its end of the contract, but the same couldn’t be said about Piastri. He also revealed that if the French outfit had taken additional actions, Piastri might not have been a McLaren driver in 2023. Or even worse, there could’ve been a possibilty he might not have been on the grid itself.

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Szafnauer explained, “We definitely performed the contract. There was a CRB (Contract Recognition Board of F1) test that landed on the side of Oscar at McLaren. But that’s not the only test. Had we tested the contract in English courts – because the contract was governed by the English law – the outcome would have been much different from CRB.“

He further revealed that Piastri ended up in McLaren only because Alpine didn’t take it to the English courts. “We performed, Oscar didn’t. From a CRB perspective, there was an out. From an English law perspective, it could have been different.” Alpine’s higher management decided to not continue the fight and accepted Oscar’s move to McLaren. “The decision was made to not continue the fight and let it be as it is. It was a decision I didn’t make. It was a decision that was made for me. But I wish Oscar well.”

Is ‘Rookie of the Year’ Oscar Piastri’s Arrival Fueling Lando Norris’ Drive to Excel?

Despite what anyone thinks about which team Oscar Piastri should have raced for, it was evident that he made the right move by choosing McLaren for the 2023 season (and beyond).

Oscar Piastri’s wonderful rookie year

Oscar Piastri’s 2023 was definitely one of the best rookie seasons Formula 1 has seen in recent history. Both in terms of raw pace and points scored, he proved to McLaren that the investment in him was well worth it. Coming off of two subpar campaigns with Daniel Ricciardo in the second seat, the Woking outfit definitely had cause for celebration after this season.

Piastri had two podium finishes (in Japan and Qatar), apart from securing a Sprint victory in his debut season, scoring a commendable 97 points for McLaren. McLaren CEO Zak Brown also praised the young Australian driver for his skills, telling the world how much Piastri and his team benefited from the move. After a long couple of seasons, McLaren finally had two drivers with similar driving styles and gave similar feedback about the car, enabling the team to contend for regular podium places toward the end of the season.

The next couple of years would be definitely interesting to watch, especially as the Lando Norris-Oscar Piastri rivalry heats up. As Piastri gains more experience, only time will tell if he can consistently take the fight to Norris.

Watch This Story: Is Oscar Piastri Already Justifying His Talent By Performing Better Than Daniel Ricciardo at McLaren?