Piastri to replace Fernando Alonso
French Formula One team Alpine have announced 21-year old Australian driver Oscar Piastri as Fernando Alonso’s replacement, once the Spaniard leaves the team at the end of the 2022 season. Piastri will be joining Esteban Ocon to make up the team’s line-up for 2023 and beyond.
Piastri joined Alpine’s junior driver academy in 2020 after winning the Formula Renault Eurocup the year before. Piastri won the F3 title in his maiden season and won the F2 title as well the following year. Despite his impressive record, the young Australian failed to get a Formula One seat and has been serving as Alpine’s reserve driver currently.
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Otmar Szafnauer, Team Principal, Alpine, commented,
“Oscar is a bright and rare talent. We are proud to have nurtured and supported him through the difficult pathways of the junior formulae.
‘Through our collaboration over the past four years, we have seen him develop and mature into a driver who is more than capable of taking the step up to Formula 1. As our reserve driver he has been exposed to the team at the track, factory and testing where he has shown the maturity, promise and speed to ensure his promotion to our second seat alongside Esteban.
‘Together, we believe the duo will give us the continuity we need to achieve our long-term goal of challenging for wins and championships.”
The team released a statement as well, which read,
“As part of his formative F1 journey, Oscar was first promoted to BWT Alpine F1 Team Reserve Driver at the start of the 2022 season and has since been undergoing, under the Team’s guidance and its full financial support, an intensive and comprehensive training programme of private tests in the race-winning A521, the 2021 Alpine F1 car, race support and simulator sessions to prepare him for the next big step into F1.
‘Alpine now looks forward to seeing the next stage in his F1 career alongside Esteban Ocon.”
The announcement comes just a day after double world champion and current Alpine driver Fernando Alonso announced that he would be replacing Sebastian Vettel at Aston Martin. Alpine had reacted to the news by stating that they weren’t aware of Alonso’s move until Aston Martin put out the press release regarding the same.
Alpine states, they wanted to continue forward with Alonso but given the interest in Piastri and the certainty of losing him to another team, which Alpine did not want, things seemed to have worked in favour for all. Reports suggest both Williams and McLaren were interested in the youngster.
Alpine have a long-term contract with Esteban Ocon till the end of the 2024 season which the Frenchman signed during the 2021 season.
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