Oscar Piastri would have preferred to be able to race in 2022 rather than spending a year just as a reserve driver at Alpine F1.
The Australian driver thus launches a (small) delayed attack on the French team which trained him and invested more than 5 million euros in private testing in F1, before he decided to sign a contract with McLaren F1 .
After winning three consecutive junior championships, including the Formula 2 title in 2021, Piastri spent 2022 as Alpine’s reserve driver, before taking up the opportunity to race for McLaren in 2023.
He said today it would have been better to race in 2022 rather than just testing or being present in the Enstone team garage.
“Racing would have been better. There is no environment in which you can prepare better than in competition.”
“During my year in testing, I especially learned a lot about the world of Formula 1 outside the cockpit, more than I expected. I understood that you can quickly get bored not to race. But I also learned useful things about how to mentally prepare for races. I was present at all the meetings at Alpine.
“I saw that, in terms of mental attitude, you cannot compare F1 with the junior categories. It’s another playing field when you add the development of the car. In Formula 3 or 2, you have to work with the car we are given without the pressure of having to race at the same time has certainly been valuable.
“But if I had the choice again today, I would have preferred to continue directly after Formula 2.”
