2016 F1 world champion Nico Rosberg feels some sympathy for Alpine F1 over what happened with Oscar Piastri, but said it was a business after all and not must not escape the usual rules of good personnel management.
Alpine directors have accepted that they must learn lessons from how they handle contracts with their drivers in the future, but both Otmar Szafnauer and Laurent Rossi have made clear their disappointment at the lack of loyalty and integrity de Piastri, who signed at McLaren.
“Of course I have sympathy for them,” confides the former Mercedes F1 driver.
« Already because they addressed all the issues of ethics and values. But as we know, it’s also a business, and for Oscar, when the opportunity arose, he took it. If you have a seat offer at McLaren and nothing firm next to it, as a young driver you have to go. »
“You can’t just wait at Alpine F1 and see what Fernando Alonso is going to do and see what they decide. Especially if the door was offered that of a loan to Williams for one or two years.
At this point, Rosberg says Alpine has to blame himself for not locking Piastri in with a contract “solid as a rock”.
« It’s a mistake on the legal side at Alpine. When you have a young driver like that, you have to make the contract rock solid for 5-10 years if you invest that much money, and I can’t believe that they left such loopholes. It’s crazy. »
For Jenson Button, who spoke alongside Rosberg, the whole truth was certainly not told in this story.
« There are always two sides to every story and hearing Piastri’s comments about how it went with the Alpine team, you’re like ‘oh okay, I kind of get it now’. »
« And then you have Laurent Rossi saying that Piastri had several contract offers and that Piastri dragged things out. To sign with McLaren? Piastri understands that McLaren is a team for the future. And I think that’s really the case. »
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https://formulaone.news/mercedes/formula-1-wolff-calls-on-f1-to-find-solutions-for-engine-penalties
