Is Oscar Piastri right to prefer McLaren to Alpine ?

Facts : Member of the fold Renault/Alpine since 2019, prepared for F1 by the A marked for two years, Oscar piastri ultimately chose to make his F1 debut with McLaren. Is the Australian right to have preferred Woking to enstone ?

YES, by Jérémy Satis

Oscar Piastri has never been the type of guy to think in the short term. Neither behind a wheel, nor for his career, always making sure to be one step ahead. Of course, Alpine is performing better than McLaren this season, and even more so since the affair broke out. The Australian would, however, be wrong to determine his choice based on the level of the two teams on the track, which are also very close to each other.

The terms of choice of the champion of F2 in title are crystal clear choices. He simply chose the team that wanted him the most! McLaren gave him a belly dance, matched his words by spending fifteen million euros to clear his path, offered him a career plan, and also offered him a higher salary. In short, consideration! And in motorsport as in love, it is essential to feel desired!

The piss-colds will accuse him of a lack of loyalty towards Alpine, a team that has been at his side since 2019 and has spent significant resources to prepare him. It would be to forget that driving with the Enstone team, Oscar asked for nothing else! Besides, we wouldn't be here if Alpine did not wait to be fooled by Alonso to offer him something concrete! The management of A fléché has opted for a burying its head policy while waiting to resolve the thorny Alonso issue. At McLaren, he was plan A. At Alpine, plan B. End of story. 

Of course, it goes without saying that on a sporting level, struggling Lando Norris as a teammate will surely be much more difficult than teaming up with Esteban Ocon. But the Aussie is the courageous and fearless type. If he certainly shouldn't be proud of the idea of ​​a collaboration with the Briton, something tells us that Lando Norris shouldn't be 100% serene either!

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One year after obtaining his F2 title, Oscar Piastri will have the opportunity to start his career in F1. © Frédéric Le Floch / DPPI

NO, by Julien Billiotte 

Far from me the desire to exonerate Alpine of the slump in which the French team got stuck alone. Now, let's focus on the sporting field because it still counts a little in Formula 1. If McLaren was indeed on a good trajectory in recent seasons, Woking missed out somewhat when negotiating the 2022 regulatory revolution. Conversely , the Blues have managed to do well by producing a competitive car on almost all types of circuit. Let us also remember thatAlpine has the benefit of being a manufacturer team, therefore in control of its destiny in terms of the integration of the powertrain into the chassis. Well, the argument has been reheated since 2016 but all the same, we have not yet seen an engine customer team win a world title in the hybrid era (we can consider that Red Bull was the strong arm of Honda last year and not a simple consumer of V6 turbo).

Certainly, Piastri would have been placed with Williams initially, but isn't it better to learn the tricks of the trade in an environment with less media exposure? George Russell, who shines at Mercedes this season after three seasons of training at Grove (United Kingdom), provides proof that it is still possible not to skip steps in Formula 1. Another detail and not the least: Piastri will have to deal with a certain Lando Norris as a teammate, the same Norris who just pushed Daniel Ricciardo towards the exit, the same Norris who has been brooded by Zak Brown and McLaren for 5 years and linked to the English team until at least 2025. Quite a piece from the start! McLaren may well use the example of Norris to prove to us through A + B that they know how to support a young driver, what about Sergio Pérez in 2013? What about Kevin Magnussen en 2014 ?

What about Stoffel Vandoorne, from whom everyone expected wonders after his impeccable career in promotion formulas? Piastri may have an equally impressive CV, but we are still talking about a driver who has not completed a single kilometer behind the wheel of a Formula 1 car in official competition. The promising Australian did not ensure a calm debut in the premier category. Because he will clearly be expected around the corner. “The kid better be quick,” warns the main Mercedes team Toto wolff, who believes that a precedent has been created for young pilot sectors. By opting for McLaren, Piastri finds himself obliged to immediately be on the pace. While he could have quietly gained strength in the fold Alpine. 

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