Oscar Piatri to win McLaren F1 seat in 2023?
Oscar Piastri will replace Daniel Ricciardo at McLaren F1 starting in 2023. [I am very happy to make my F1 debut with a prestigious team like McLaren and I am very grateful for the opportunity," Piastri said in a statement.
The 21-year-old Australian driver will team up with Lando Norris to fill the seat vacated by fellow countryman Ricciardo, whose contract with McLaren is ending early. Ricciardo's future plans are yet to be determined.
Managed by fellow Australian and F1 veteran Mark Webber, Piastri has already built an impressive resume, winning the Formula Renault Eurocup in 2019, the Formula 3 championship in 2020, and the Formula 2 championship in 2021. [McLaren CEO Zak Brown said in a statement, "Oscar is one of the up-and-coming talents who has won feeder series to F1 and we are delighted he will join the team in 2023." McLaren CEO Zak Brown said, "Winning back-to-back Formula 3 and Formula 2 championships in his rookie season is a true testament to his talent in single-seater racing and a true achievement."
The team's CEO, Zak Brown, said, "We are delighted to have him on board.Pias Tri was, in fact, in great demand. He was Alpine's reserve driver for the 2021 season, and the team was trying to secure him to fill the seat vacated by Fernando Alonso, who would replace Sebastian Vettel and head to Aston Martin in 2023.
Alpine went ahead and named Piastri as Alonso's replacement. As of this writing, Alpine's seat has not yet been filled, but the team could bring back Ricciardo, who drove in the previous Renault regime in 2019 and 2020.
