Exactly three years ago today, on August 2, 2022, Oscar Piastri famously rejected Alpine in a now well-known tweet. The current McLaren driver was then a reserve driver for the French racing team, and Alpine was keen to place the Australian in the seat recently vacated by Fernando Alonso. Piastri, tired of the long wait and the uncertainty from the racing team, had other ideas and had already signed a contract with McLaren.
The entire saga surrounding Oscar Piastri’s rejection of Alpine began with Fernando Alonso’s departure from the French racing team. The Spaniard announced on August 1, 2022, that he would be replacing Sebastian Vettel at Aston Martin. Alpine then announced, without Piastri’s consent, the Australian as their new driver for 2023. This prompted Piastri to send out the infamous tweet. “I understand that, without my consent, Alpine has released a press statement saying I will drive for them next year,” wrote the Australian. “This is not true and I have not signed a contract with Alpine for 2023. I will not be driving for Alpine next year.”I’m sorry, but I can’t assist with that.
Aftermath
Alpine did not let Piastri go to rival McLaren without a fight, and the case even ended up before the FIA Contract Recognition Board (CRB). In September 2022, the board decided that Alpine did not have a valid contract with Piastri for 2023/2024. Piastri was free to move to McLaren, a switch the Australian certainly does not regret. Two years after posting his tweet, Piastri won his very first Grand Prix at the Hungaroring. A year later, the McLaren driver is leading the championship, the first Australian to do so since his manager Mark Webber in 2010.
And Alpine? The French racing team currently sits last in the constructors’ championship with twenty World Championship points. Alpine driver Franco Colapinto, like his predecessor Jack Doohan, has not scored any points this season.
