Oscar Piastri has just completed his third season in Formula 1, finishing with 410 points, only behind Lando Norris and Max Verstappen in the drivers’ championship.
The Australian has made significant progress with McLaren, the Woking-based team that welcomed him in 2023, after a year serving as Alpine’s third driver.
In a video for Off The Grid, Oscar Piastri spoke about his debut and the controversy sparked by his former team, Alpine, which had announced him as one of their official drivers for 2023.
“I understand that, without my consent, Alpine F1 issued a press release late in the afternoon claiming that I would drive for them next year. This is not true: I did not sign any contract with Alpine for 2023. I will not be driving for Alpine next year,” Oscar Piastri wrote in a social media post just hours after the announcement.
Piastri reflects on the situation
“There was a lot of confusion about what was happening. I knew it was going to be a fairly big story,” he said in the video. “There were many reasons for doing what I did, it wasn’t like I wanted to announce to the world that I wouldn’t be racing. I laugh about it now, but at the time it was not fun at all.”
“It obviously went to the CRB [Contract Recognition Board, the FIA body that resolves contract conflicts]. Things went in my favor, but it was a really tense moment,” he admitted.
After resolving the issue, the Australian was finally able to announce the start of his career with McLaren. “It was an incredible moment,” he said. “Then you also realize that what you had done up to that point almost no longer mattered. There was the pressure from everything that had happened, and also the pressure of being on the grid next to Lewis Hamilton.”
Despite the drama, Oscar Piastri moved on quickly, focusing instead on his first race. Today, the 24-year-old’s progress continues, with his talent increasingly shining through.
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