Oscar Piastri signs McLaren for 2023
3rd September 2022The saga surrounding Oscar Piastri has finally come to an end as the FIA’s Contract Recognition Board has allowed the Australian to race for McLaren for 2023.
The 2021 Formula 2 world champion, Piastri, and McLaren have finally confirmed the Australian driver will race for the Woking-based outfit, in Formula 1, next season.
Alpine and McLaren met with the CRB on Monday, after the Belgium Grand Prix, to settle to legal dispute which both teams stated to have a valid contract in place for Piastri.
In a statement, released by the FIA, the hearing concluded:
“A Tribunal appointed by the Contract Recognition Board held a meeting on 29 August 2022 when counsel for Alpine Racing Limited, McLaren Racing Limited and Mr Oscar Piastri were heard.
“The Tribunal has issued a Unanimous Decision that the only Contract to be recognised by the Board is the Contract between McLaren Racing Limited and Mr Piastri dated 4 July 2022.
“Mr Piastri is entitled to drive for McLaren Racing Limited for the 2023 and 2024 seasons.”
Shortly after, Piastri said:
“The news is finally out, I’ll be joining the Formula 1 grid in 2023 with McLaren.
“I am super excited to be joining the grid, and with such a prestigious team like McLaren. I have no doubt it’s a great place to start my career and, yeah, it’s been a long road up until this point.
“I’ve been racing for 12 years and this was my dream from the very beginning so I just want to thank everybody who supported me throughout my journey, including my colleagues at Alpine for the past few years and also my family – in particular – who made a significant contribution to supporting my career from the very beginning.
“I can’t wait to be representing Papaya [McLaren’s colours], I’ll be doing my best to drive as quickly as possible and get some good results.”
The saga came to fruition after Alpine’s Fernando Alonso announced he would move to Aston Martin, to replace the outgoing Sebastian Vettel for 2023.
This spurred Alpine to announce they were to replace their two-time world champion with Piastri. However, Piastri publicly refuted the claim on Twitter.
Following a poor run of performance, McLaren decided to part ways with their eight-time race winner, Daniel Ricciardo, at the end of the season which opened the door for Piastri’s arrival.
After the news broke, Alpine stated on Twitter:
“BWT Alpine F1 Team thanks the Contract Recognition Board (CRB) for convening on Monday and we acknowledge the decision they have made.
“We consider the matter closed on our side and will announce our full 2023 driver line-up in due course.
“Our immediate focus is the Dutch Grand Prix and securing points in our fight for fourth in the Constructors’ Championship.”
That’s it for the article: Oscar Piastri signs McLaren for 2023! What do you think of McLaren’s, and Piastri’s, decision? Let us know in the comments!
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Hi, I’m Kamron. I created ApexMotorsports.co.uk in the dying embers of the 2021 Formula 1 world championship. It allowed me freedom to write whatever I wanted to write about which was all things motorsports, my passion.
I have put a lot of effort in over the years to keep this website in its best shape and I’ve loved seeing the brand grow consistently, month-on-month, year-on-year. My ambition is to keep watching this brand grow into a primary outlet of news for all things motorsports whilst fueling my desire to pursue a career in sports journalism, specialising in motorsports.
Kamron Kent
Hi, I'm Kamron. I created ApexMotorsports.co.uk in the dying embers of the 2021 Formula 1 world championship. It allowed me freedom to write whatever I wanted to write about which was all things motorsports, my passion. I have put a lot of effort in over the years to keep this website in its best shape and I've loved seeing the brand grow consistently, month-on-month, year-on-year. My ambition is to keep watching this brand grow into a primary outlet of news for all things motorsports whilst fueling my desire to pursue a career in sports journalism, specialising in motorsports.
