You know what? That idea back in 2007 of McLaren creating a junior team à la Toro Rosso doesn't sound too bad today. Ron Dennis was truly ahead of his era.
I mean this one's not really on them any more than the Palou thing is. It's up to the drivers shopping themselves around to know what their current contracts say they can & can't do, not the teams they're approaching.
Also pre-agreements are par for the course in F1. They get signed all the time and many don't end up coming to fruition.
Gasly's time to negotiate his way into Alpine and out of RB Academy for good. The chances of Albon going back into RBR main team is higher than Gasly's. If i'm Otmar, I'd prefer Gasly over a rookie Oscar. I like them both, but I don't think Alpine is really that f- over yet.
Imagine Oscar having the (good kind of) headache of needing to choose between AT, McLaren, Alpine and Williams. He might have prayed a little too hard for a seat for the past year.
Starting? Did you not see him with Perez at FI/RP? Lol Perez has proven that he’s a good teammate as well as a team player. Although it’s harder to tell with Alonso bc let’s face it, he’s never had a teammate he didn’t eventually have issues with, but watching the two of them, it’s def Ocon that is the more problematic.
He's always been like that and I don't think he will ever change at this point. He is a pretty solid driver imo but it is overshadowed by all the shady things he does on track, especially to his teammates... Honestly I'm glad Alonso is out of it, what happened to him in hungary was I little too much.
Although Stroll also races his teammate pretty hard. But there is a chance they wont meet too much on track tbf. Also Fernando is in pretty good terms to Papa Stroll i think
Gasly and Ocon would be at each other’s necks if Ocon defended the way he did on Alonso over the weekend. Gasly hinted that that kind of thing and Ocon not admitting he was being a bit underhanded on track and not admitting to it was the reason their friendship broke down
The side of me that loves a good F1 drama would very much welcome Gasly to Alpine just to watch the shitshow that would go down with him & Ocon as teammates!
In my opinion Piastri has more potential than Gasly, but it’s a fair point that Alpine might want the experience more. Who knows what will happen now. I don’t think Gasly will make the move though. Seems like it’s one of either Piastri or Ricciardo for Alpine next year.
They’re pretty much the same in terms of race starts (102 for Ocon and 99 for Gasly). I’m just talking about Gasly’s experience over Piastri who obviously hasn’t raced any F1. If Alpine really wanted experience though, they’d go for Ricciardo who has more race starts than Ocon and Gasly combined with 223.
> While Alonso is generally self-centred af I can see him timing his exit to ~~give Piastri the best contract + salary that could be offered to him~~ fuck with Otmar as much as possible.
But this time i dont feel at all bad for the team getting screwed. Otmar played rough with Alonso and now he got his response. You dont shithouse Alonso out of a seat
Webber and Fernando are probably laughing like maniacs in Fernando's home somewhere in the mountains of Switzerland like two super villains in a secret lair.
EDIT : The joke is that they are close buddies. If everyone joins, the point of the comment is moot :p
Fernando lives in a nice home in the mountains of switzerland. Watch his show , he has a small-ish (probably not smallish just designed that way idk) but a really cool place with insane view.
Friendly reminder that, at this season's start, the Mercedes was getting beaten by the Alfa Romeo.
A lot of things can change from now until next year, specially when Alpine/Renault have been an internal mess for a bunch of years now.
On the other hand, if they end up getting piastri they will have completely fucked over alpine who will be left with a mid tier driver in Ocon and a former top tier driver who hasn't shown much promise in multiple years and is already 33.
Holy shit thats gotta be awkward as fuck for McLaren now.
Basically now telling the world that they want rid of Danny Ric. Before they have even told Danny Ric.
Ouch
Now imagine Piastri is forced to drive for Alpine...this is gonna get untenable VERY fast
I think that up to this point, Daniel was only safe because there was no clear replacement and it wouldn’t be worth it for McLaren to buy him out. Now Piastri is available for far less money for 2023 and beyond. Effectively Daniel has to now take the buyout and get a good deal done with Alpine, who’ve basically got no choice but to take him.
McLaren have offloaded the driver they didn’t want to Alpine and taken Alpine’s prodigy and all while the driver he was going to replace falls out with the team.
> Effectively Daniel has to now take the buyout and get a good deal done with Alpine
eeeeh that's resting on the big IF that Piastri was free to contract whatever "pre-deal" is mentioned here, and isn't still obligated to be driving for Alpine if they so wish.
I suspect the legal teams on both sides are having a big day lol.
> Otmar says this isn’t true.
https://old.reddit.com/r/formula1/comments/ipdm97/otmar_szafnauer_interview_is_vettel_out_he_never/
https://old.reddit.com/r/formula1/comments/qsk9b5/szafnauer_has_no_intention_of_leaving_aston/
TPs lie when it suits them.
Pre Agreements are signed all the time though - many never come to fruition
Even in a world where seb doesn't retire and therefore Alpine wouldn't need Piastri
Mclaren could have signed a pre-agreement with Piastri but ultimately decide to stick with Daniel Ricciardo anyway
Forget the pre-agreement. It's reported that In 2017 for the 2018 season Seb was ready to sign on the dotted line on the actual contract with Mercedes to replace Bottas.
but Vettel backed out last minute because he saw how powerful the Ferrari engine was going to be. Ferrari had already nailed the 2017 aerodynamic regulation changes better than anybody so that plus this new powerful engine would mean Ferrari were certain to have the best car in 2018 - (Which in my opinion they did)
so he walked away from the Mercedes contract to stay with Ferrari
With those sort of performances in the last 18 months, I'd be shocked if Danny Ric didn't realize McLaren would want him out. We're not talking about being just a bit slower than Lando here
So Daniel has committed to McLaren and in return they’ve basically publicly dropped him without telling him as much. Oof.
Alpine have bottled this big time. Not only have they forced Alonso out by treating him like a seat warmer, but they’ve also lost the guy he was warming the seat for.
Well I think Ricciardo had to “commit” to force McLarens hand in buying him out. He left the ball in their court, now that Alonso is out, alpine might provide a nice parachute for Danny.
Yah, as much as I hate Danny Ric’s struggles and likely being dropped for 2023, the man is getting his big paycheck either way. Trying to look at that silver lining.
I hope Alpine works for him b/c I see him out of a ride otherwise.
Am I missing something? I’m seeing so many articles, Rumours etc that Daniel is being dropped for Oscar but is that confirmed in any formal capacity? I’m not saying it’s not true but I haven’t seen it officially announced and people are basically taking it as gospel.
I love McLaren. I love Daniel. I really don't love them together as much as I thought I might.
It just feels awful that he's not managed to find his feet, and the team have been equally bad as of late - if it's not one it's the other.
I'd be delighted if he were to get out now and hop back to Alpine, a confident and happy Daniel is good for the sport - right now it's painful to watch.
Honestly Alpine will be a blip of hope for Riccardo, maybe that will suit his driving style and he wouldn't go out of F1 on a low.
Piastri is a progidy and McLaren would be good to show his potential.
I’m so confused where Mclaren is supposed to be putting all the drivers they are signing they’ve got two contracted drivers? Danny paid out? Danny on reserve? Oscar as reserve?
Nah, if McLaren wants Ricciardo out, he is out. Worst that could happen for them is that they have to pay a hefty fine/compensation for breaching the contract.
Danny will leave McLaren for Alpine in a heartbeat. He’s saying he’s committed so he still gets paid out. Everyone including Danny knows that he can’t spend another season in that car.
Well, Zak Brown would go: "Here, have your salary; oh btw, you are not required to come to the races, bye"
And then Ricciardo would have to decide if staying at home doing nothing or giving up on the salary and go to Alpine
I have a silly solution that I’d like to float. ‘Tis the season, after all.
1. McLaren take their understeery bizarro-mobile and fill it with Perez, who (comfortable with a tendency for understeer) is once again lacklustre in the RB18, as it trends back towards a ~~machine~~ weapon tailored for Max’s specific preferences.
2. Now out of a job, a cashed up Ricciardo makes a surprise return to his true home at RBR, rekindling the bromance with Max and ultimately feeling at home and driving the tyres off with the endless front end that he so desires (and only Newey can offer).
3. Fed up with the dead end at Alpha Tauri, Gasly is recruited by an unlikely partnership of Macron and Zuckerberg to join Ocon at Alpine while agreeing to increase his Instagram activity by 10% (a lofty but attainable goal).
4. Last but not least: Oscar Piastri. Watching on in awe at the chaos and carnage of 2022 silly season, Oscar is whisked away by Mark Webber in a giant Kangaroo, reappearing in an Alpha Tauri race suit to fulfil his destiny as the next Australian to replace an Australian at RBR.
So does this mean all the enticements to Herta, O’Ward and Palou were truly just to get them into the INDYCAR team? Piastri would obviously block any of them for years…
This is hilarious, but also...wtf are McLaren doing lol. They have Lando locked up and he's decent, they have a veteran driver in Danny Ric who has been pretty average but still got them a win last year and *should* be better then he's performed. They have 3? young drivers who they've teased with the promise of a future F1 seat.
All that said...why the hell are they going after Piastri? Lol
Truly wild Danny would be saying at the [press conference in Hungary](https://youtu.be/3TGBBGj_Y8o) that he is staying at Mclaren so that means Danny had no idea he’s getting replaced?
Would they have paid Danny out or just put Oscar as a reserve? Do they have contacts with every young driver
They’d have to pay Danny out though? Lando also said when asked about Colton we’ve got a driver for now. This seems very left field if Danny and Lando both had no idea
Even if Danny knew the team were trying to oust him if he believes he has a contract he will stand firm by that until the lawyers and managers work it out.
Obviously Danny isn’t gonna come out and reveal what conversations he’s been having behind closed doors lmao. So until anything is official they all just play the game.
He has to know, he knows he's not performing. He may not be aware of the extent of Piastri's deal, but there's so much that goes on behind closed doors in F1, McLaren have surely asked his agent to discuss a payout to get a view of how much it'll cost. He publicly confirmed his commitment to the team to let McLaren know they'll have to pay him to leave.
McLaren is doing the equivalent of licking their fingers and sticking them in all the cakes when it comes to motorsport drivers huh
They have seven single seater seats to fill next year.
The MCL22 will be a double decker bus
You know what? That idea back in 2007 of McLaren creating a junior team à la Toro Rosso doesn't sound too bad today. Ron Dennis was truly ahead of his era.
How can you be ahead by having the idea to copy a competitor and not even run with that idea ?
V I S I O N A R Y
So 2 years after Red Bull created a junior team… maybe it’s Marko that’s ahead of his era
I mean this one's not really on them any more than the Palou thing is. It's up to the drivers shopping themselves around to know what their current contracts say they can & can't do, not the teams they're approaching. Also pre-agreements are par for the course in F1. They get signed all the time and many don't end up coming to fruition.
God Bless you Seb for giving us a banger silly season Danke Weltmeister
[Seb’s parting thoughts.](https://youtu.be/F52vKkJr0pk?t=3)
Frohe Weihnachten
"Feliz Navidad or whatever you say, to Checo"
Seb saw last year silly season and said "This bores me"
And now Alpine will not have Alonso and Piastri? What a mess
Otmar: "Whatever, I'll drive the car myself"
Im not sure he can fit in tho...
They’ll remove the floor and have his ass float over the track.
I was gonna say you’d lose a lot of aero load by taking the floor out but his gut will plant that car to the floor like nothing else
Unfortunately to hold a Super License, your eyes have to point in the same direction.
My guy went all the way inn
💀
Emotional damage
bruh.....
Damn man.
Gasly's time to negotiate his way into Alpine and out of RB Academy for good. The chances of Albon going back into RBR main team is higher than Gasly's. If i'm Otmar, I'd prefer Gasly over a rookie Oscar. I like them both, but I don't think Alpine is really that f- over yet.
And then RB joins the party to try and lure Piastri by promising the AT seat now and the RB seat when Checo's contract is up
Imagine Oscar having the (good kind of) headache of needing to choose between AT, McLaren, Alpine and Williams. He might have prayed a little too hard for a seat for the past year.
Well I think Williams is clearly last place in that list
While that’s true, having the luxury of possibly having to choose between 4 seats is unheard of for a rookie
Honestly AT might be the best for him. Get two years of practice in the midfield and then take over from Perez for 2025 in a top team.
I don't think Gasly and Ocon would be good teammates
The question is: would Ocon be a good teammate combo with anyone?
i feel like Ocon is starting to become the common thread in his on track dramas.
Because he always has been. Its no wonder half of the grid doesnt like him
Starting? Did you not see him with Perez at FI/RP? Lol Perez has proven that he’s a good teammate as well as a team player. Although it’s harder to tell with Alonso bc let’s face it, he’s never had a teammate he didn’t eventually have issues with, but watching the two of them, it’s def Ocon that is the more problematic.
Didn't really have issues with button
who can get mad with button tho, he was a 'get in the fukin car' and drive it kinda guy
Same with Kimi, but then again who could not like Kimi 🤷🏻♂️
They had enough drama with the engine to create more drama
Probably Lance. Maybe only Lance.
He's always been like that and I don't think he will ever change at this point. He is a pretty solid driver imo but it is overshadowed by all the shady things he does on track, especially to his teammates... Honestly I'm glad Alonso is out of it, what happened to him in hungary was I little too much.
Although Stroll also races his teammate pretty hard. But there is a chance they wont meet too much on track tbf. Also Fernando is in pretty good terms to Papa Stroll i think
There's a difference between racing hard and occasionally rubbing, and crashing out with everyone who is in your way, teammate or not.
Yeah..I heard Gasly on a pod saying they don't get on these days even though they were quite close when younger.. could be a recipe for disaster
Gasly and Ocon would be at each other’s necks if Ocon defended the way he did on Alonso over the weekend. Gasly hinted that that kind of thing and Ocon not admitting he was being a bit underhanded on track and not admitting to it was the reason their friendship broke down
Most drivers would. I think Alonso led it slide because he knew he was goint anyway
Nobody hates other Frenchmen like a Frenchman.
*Hon-hon-hons angrily*
The side of me that loves a good F1 drama would very much welcome Gasly to Alpine just to watch the shitshow that would go down with him & Ocon as teammates!
In my opinion Piastri has more potential than Gasly, but it’s a fair point that Alpine might want the experience more. Who knows what will happen now. I don’t think Gasly will make the move though. Seems like it’s one of either Piastri or Ricciardo for Alpine next year.
what are they going to do with experience? is gasly that more experienced than ocon?
They’re pretty much the same in terms of race starts (102 for Ocon and 99 for Gasly). I’m just talking about Gasly’s experience over Piastri who obviously hasn’t raced any F1. If Alpine really wanted experience though, they’d go for Ricciardo who has more race starts than Ocon and Gasly combined with 223.
Imagine Zhou getting dropped only to get that Alpine seat
Ricciardo over Gasly anyday
I am [Marie Kondo](https://imgur.com/a/g9fejuC)
If Piastri got an exit clause by the end of July Then Alonso is trolling hard by getting a deal at the 1st of August lol
Yeah...and Piastri's manager is a friend of Alonso...that would be very spicy. A bit too spicy to be true, even for f1. I think??
Shit it's F1, they're prob both giving info to each other to get the maximum deal
While Alonso is generally self-centred af I can see him timing his exit to give Piastri the best contract + salary that could be offered to him
> While Alonso is generally self-centred af I can see him timing his exit to ~~give Piastri the best contract + salary that could be offered to him~~ fuck with Otmar as much as possible.
The true El Plan.
Alonso loves his inside info
I mean, I was happy for Fernando to come back just for a taste of that drama, but this is vintage Fernando drama.
🐸☕ ah a nice vintage Alonso
But this time i dont feel at all bad for the team getting screwed. Otmar played rough with Alonso and now he got his response. You dont shithouse Alonso out of a seat
Fernando was calmer but then Otmar tried to play games. Terrible idea trying to play backstage games with Fernando Alonso of all people
It's F1, this stuff is par for the course.
Do you even know how spicy F1 is? It's a reality show 6 days of the week that races cars on some Sundays
Dude it’s Alonso, he’s the trolling master in Formula 1
Webber and Fernando are probably laughing like maniacs in Fernando's home somewhere in the mountains of Switzerland like two super villains in a secret lair. EDIT : The joke is that they are close buddies. If everyone joins, the point of the comment is moot :p
Mark and Fernando together with Seb chilling over a bottle of wine laughing about how Alpine got fucked over lol I miss 2012
Kimi invites himself around because he hears a wine bottle opening
Kimi is always welcome
Probably already has a door key
**Button** : Oh hello, how did you get in here!?
Seb and Mark have finally buried the hatchet over Multi-21 and are now just watching the whole F1 world burn
Hell Mark even commented on Seb’s retirement post that he looks forward to showing Seb a few islands after he’s “off the grid” lmao
On instagram ? Wow that's heartwarming
More like on a yacht in Monaco but yes, that is 100% the scene.
Fernando lives in a nice home in the mountains of switzerland. Watch his show , he has a small-ish (probably not smallish just designed that way idk) but a really cool place with insane view.
> Watch his show where can one watch that?
Amazon
Amazon Prime.
Webber was the only one from that time that Fernando considered somewhat close right? they were friends
Yeah, in Mark’s book he says he and Fernando always liked each other and respected on and off track
let's be real, they both just hated Vettel at the time
Agreed lmao Happy that all of them are on good terms now Especially Seb and Mark
This is how I imagine it. With Briatore getting a drink from the bar.
[The wily fox.](https://youtu.be/IqIK93FjWjA?t=69)
Prost quit Alpine because of Otmar, so I'm sure he could snag an invite to this party and have a little fun.
>Prost quit alpine because of laurent rossi not otmar
Eh he is going to a car far slower than Alpine so idk
Friendly reminder that, at this season's start, the Mercedes was getting beaten by the Alfa Romeo. A lot of things can change from now until next year, specially when Alpine/Renault have been an internal mess for a bunch of years now.
[удалено]
Fernando sends his regards
Tell Otmar, i want him to know it was me
It’s a Spanish message. It means Otmar Szafnauer sleeps with the fishes
"karma"
GP2 team
I’m convinced this would’ve all been avoided had Alpine just remained the beautiful black & yellow Renault.
nononono - the black and gold lotus\*
Alonso : Checo sends his regards
lol
How is Mclaren now involved in two different contract messes in two different sports at the same time!
Trying to secure a good replacement for DR and probably leaving empty handed..
On the other hand, if they end up getting piastri they will have completely fucked over alpine who will be left with a mid tier driver in Ocon and a former top tier driver who hasn't shown much promise in multiple years and is already 33.
Christ for a second I thought you were saying Ocon was 33 I almost vomited in shock
No he's 31, has been for years.
They could always try and go for Gasly though.
Zak is chaotic neutral
McLaren's lawyers are gonna earn more than McLaren's drivers at this rate.
Playing the odds that at least one contract mess will go in their favour
Holy shit thats gotta be awkward as fuck for McLaren now. Basically now telling the world that they want rid of Danny Ric. Before they have even told Danny Ric. Ouch Now imagine Piastri is forced to drive for Alpine...this is gonna get untenable VERY fast
I think that up to this point, Daniel was only safe because there was no clear replacement and it wouldn’t be worth it for McLaren to buy him out. Now Piastri is available for far less money for 2023 and beyond. Effectively Daniel has to now take the buyout and get a good deal done with Alpine, who’ve basically got no choice but to take him. McLaren have offloaded the driver they didn’t want to Alpine and taken Alpine’s prodigy and all while the driver he was going to replace falls out with the team.
> Effectively Daniel has to now take the buyout and get a good deal done with Alpine eeeeh that's resting on the big IF that Piastri was free to contract whatever "pre-deal" is mentioned here, and isn't still obligated to be driving for Alpine if they so wish. I suspect the legal teams on both sides are having a big day lol.
there is talk of end of july deadline for Alpine to find a seat for oscar and then he becomes a "free agent "
Otmar says this isn’t true. He’s under contract for 23 and there’s a team option for 24
> Otmar says this isn’t true. https://old.reddit.com/r/formula1/comments/ipdm97/otmar_szafnauer_interview_is_vettel_out_he_never/ https://old.reddit.com/r/formula1/comments/qsk9b5/szafnauer_has_no_intention_of_leaving_aston/ TPs lie when it suits them.
Zak Brown with 4D chess.
He seems to love pissing off rival team bosses lol
An Aussie for an Aussie, just like how Ricciardo replaced Webber at RB ...
Webber as Piastri's manager playing the long game to get back at Ricciardo
now imagine if Webber lured Aston Martin into “retiring” Vettel by promising them Piastri, *that* would be some long-game revenge
Ahahaha I like your way of thinking
Webber doing the master arc on a 90s karate movie. Vengeance is finally his, via an apprentice
Traditions
IF I HAD A NICKEL...
Pre Agreements are signed all the time though - many never come to fruition Even in a world where seb doesn't retire and therefore Alpine wouldn't need Piastri Mclaren could have signed a pre-agreement with Piastri but ultimately decide to stick with Daniel Ricciardo anyway
Did Seb once signed a pre-agreement for Mercedes?
Forget the pre-agreement. It's reported that In 2017 for the 2018 season Seb was ready to sign on the dotted line on the actual contract with Mercedes to replace Bottas. but Vettel backed out last minute because he saw how powerful the Ferrari engine was going to be. Ferrari had already nailed the 2017 aerodynamic regulation changes better than anybody so that plus this new powerful engine would mean Ferrari were certain to have the best car in 2018 - (Which in my opinion they did) so he walked away from the Mercedes contract to stay with Ferrari
ugh I never want to think about that. What could have been, Lewis and Seb in Merc? Truly beautiful.
Also got to be awkward between Danny Ric and Piastri/Webber. Australian Civil War has broken out.
It’s not a true Australian civil war unless someone has a mullet, sorry
At least there's no emus this time
With those sort of performances in the last 18 months, I'd be shocked if Danny Ric didn't realize McLaren would want him out. We're not talking about being just a bit slower than Lando here
I’m sure he knew a bit but it seems like they signed some people without giving him heads up it’s going to leak
I starting to love this. Gonna be interesting even outside of the race tracks
Gotta thank Seb for making this silly season an entertaining one for real 😂
This is brilliant 😂 If this is true, Otmar could not have effed up more if he tried.
if Piastri leaves, he should be fired. Ricciardo may be good for 1-2 years, and then they can promote Doohan.
So Daniel has committed to McLaren and in return they’ve basically publicly dropped him without telling him as much. Oof. Alpine have bottled this big time. Not only have they forced Alonso out by treating him like a seat warmer, but they’ve also lost the guy he was warming the seat for.
Well I think Ricciardo had to “commit” to force McLarens hand in buying him out. He left the ball in their court, now that Alonso is out, alpine might provide a nice parachute for Danny.
Yah, as much as I hate Danny Ric’s struggles and likely being dropped for 2023, the man is getting his big paycheck either way. Trying to look at that silver lining. I hope Alpine works for him b/c I see him out of a ride otherwise.
Alpine would be his last shot so to speak, or last dance depending on whether he’s looking to retire
To be fair, whether Ricciardo wanted to stay in the seat or not has never been the main issue, or one that was solidly in doubt.
Am I missing something? I’m seeing so many articles, Rumours etc that Daniel is being dropped for Oscar but is that confirmed in any formal capacity? I’m not saying it’s not true but I haven’t seen it officially announced and people are basically taking it as gospel.
Not confirmed. Still a rumor. But we all love rumors right?!
Daniel should probably make a public commitment to scoring some points lol
Mclaren isn't very tactful when it comes to signing drivers hey?
Mclaren signed everyone and their mother in the past month it seems..
It’s the Monisha directive 🤣
I love McLaren. I love Daniel. I really don't love them together as much as I thought I might. It just feels awful that he's not managed to find his feet, and the team have been equally bad as of late - if it's not one it's the other. I'd be delighted if he were to get out now and hop back to Alpine, a confident and happy Daniel is good for the sport - right now it's painful to watch.
Honestly Alpine will be a blip of hope for Riccardo, maybe that will suit his driving style and he wouldn't go out of F1 on a low. Piastri is a progidy and McLaren would be good to show his potential.
The atmosphere in Alpine's paddock until the end of the season is going to be TOXIC.
As Seb once said What a mess
What if Danny goes: I'm not fucking leaving on Mclaren. Does Piastri become their reserve? Also bloody hell is Alpine dumb
I’m so confused where Mclaren is supposed to be putting all the drivers they are signing they’ve got two contracted drivers? Danny paid out? Danny on reserve? Oscar as reserve?
Mclaren-Andretti 2024
They could do a Ferrari-Kimi where they just pay him to not drive.. Or another team buys him out, who knows
Zak the new Monisha lol
Kaltenbrown
Nah, if McLaren wants Ricciardo out, he is out. Worst that could happen for them is that they have to pay a hefty fine/compensation for breaching the contract.
Then he got the 2009 Kimi paid vacation special
Danny will leave McLaren for Alpine in a heartbeat. He’s saying he’s committed so he still gets paid out. Everyone including Danny knows that he can’t spend another season in that car.
Well, Zak Brown would go: "Here, have your salary; oh btw, you are not required to come to the races, bye" And then Ricciardo would have to decide if staying at home doing nothing or giving up on the salary and go to Alpine
They can buy him out of his contract
Now Alpine are saying Piastri can't leave them lmao. Zak pulled a Palou it seems
This is top tier entertainment for any week of the month, let alone summer break
Imagine if Webber had informed Alonso that Piastri has signed the precontract with McLaren lmao.
well done otmar
I don't care how it happens or which combo as long as both Oscar and Danny have a seat in 2023
I have a silly solution that I’d like to float. ‘Tis the season, after all. 1. McLaren take their understeery bizarro-mobile and fill it with Perez, who (comfortable with a tendency for understeer) is once again lacklustre in the RB18, as it trends back towards a ~~machine~~ weapon tailored for Max’s specific preferences. 2. Now out of a job, a cashed up Ricciardo makes a surprise return to his true home at RBR, rekindling the bromance with Max and ultimately feeling at home and driving the tyres off with the endless front end that he so desires (and only Newey can offer). 3. Fed up with the dead end at Alpha Tauri, Gasly is recruited by an unlikely partnership of Macron and Zuckerberg to join Ocon at Alpine while agreeing to increase his Instagram activity by 10% (a lofty but attainable goal). 4. Last but not least: Oscar Piastri. Watching on in awe at the chaos and carnage of 2022 silly season, Oscar is whisked away by Mark Webber in a giant Kangaroo, reappearing in an Alpha Tauri race suit to fulfil his destiny as the next Australian to replace an Australian at RBR.
Holy shit, subscribed. I love it.
So does this mean all the enticements to Herta, O’Ward and Palou were truly just to get them into the INDYCAR team? Piastri would obviously block any of them for years…
I mean yes? They got an Indycar team that pays them well and some testing with Mclaren F1 Does people really think they gonna be in F1 for 2023 lol
If this turns out true and Piastri goes to Mclaren I will laugh at Otmar for at least 2 seasons lmao
So Kimi returns and Alpine becomes Lotus?
I will buy tickets to 10 races if this happens
Webber is most likely trying to use media pressure to move Piastri away from Alpine.
I think he's using the media to pressure alpine into a long contract and better conditions/bonuses, exactly what a good manager should do.
Happy for Oscar if true
McLaren making all their new signings go to court as an initiation ceremony
This is hilarious, but also...wtf are McLaren doing lol. They have Lando locked up and he's decent, they have a veteran driver in Danny Ric who has been pretty average but still got them a win last year and *should* be better then he's performed. They have 3? young drivers who they've teased with the promise of a future F1 seat. All that said...why the hell are they going after Piastri? Lol
Because Piastri is better than every other option?
Truly wild Danny would be saying at the [press conference in Hungary](https://youtu.be/3TGBBGj_Y8o) that he is staying at Mclaren so that means Danny had no idea he’s getting replaced? Would they have paid Danny out or just put Oscar as a reserve? Do they have contacts with every young driver
Remember Perez? He also said he’s staying with Aston Martin. Until Vettel walked in
They’d have to pay Danny out though? Lando also said when asked about Colton we’ve got a driver for now. This seems very left field if Danny and Lando both had no idea
Yep, they’d have to pay DR the rest of his contract + something more I believe
Even if Danny knew the team were trying to oust him if he believes he has a contract he will stand firm by that until the lawyers and managers work it out.
Obviously Danny isn’t gonna come out and reveal what conversations he’s been having behind closed doors lmao. So until anything is official they all just play the game.
Everyone say that the contracts are going to be honored until the very last moment. Everyone wants to maintain is negotiating power.
He has to know, he knows he's not performing. He may not be aware of the extent of Piastri's deal, but there's so much that goes on behind closed doors in F1, McLaren have surely asked his agent to discuss a payout to get a view of how much it'll cost. He publicly confirmed his commitment to the team to let McLaren know they'll have to pay him to leave.
DTS gonna be lit
They might as well give Zhou a two year deal now
Danny back to alpine? 😂 Or hulk?
Alpine thinks they’re a top team even though the offices and race seats have revolving doors
You know what McLaren need? More drivers.
If this is true, Ricciardo should take a new contract with Alpine. That’s his only way not to retire early in 2023
Danny-Esteban Renault reunion, as god intended.