Stig14 wrote: ↑07 Sep 2022, 08:17
F1since1980 wrote: ↑07 Sep 2022, 07:48
They should have told us they signed something on July 4th with McLaren. Had they told us back in July, we certainly would not have announced Oscar's signing in August until this matter was properly sorted out. Ok the CRB sorted the matter out and we came up on the wrong end, so be it. But Oscar and Webber are clearly trying to spin a positive - we are the victims narrative at our expense and I won't stand for it. Again, I want to confirm we knew nothing about a July 4th agreement. Why hide that from us after all the miles this kid has done at our expense. And why don't you guys ask Andreas Seidl and Zac Brown why they talk out of both sides of their mouths: secretly signing Oscar on July 4th and holding press conferences in the middle of that month supporting Daniel for next year. I find that appalling and that to me that lacks integrity and I am entitled to my opinion on that.
Generally I think the way the whole saga has been reported has done damage to all involved but now we know the facts, we need to be more subjective. Both Oscar and Otmar have acknowledged that Piastri's team did let Alpine know about their contract signed with McLaren on 4th July but Alpine still announced Oscar because they believed they had something watertight with him. We now know they didn't and simply mismanaged the situation by announcing him anyway. As for your point on McLaren's management of this, both Daniel and Andreas have said that they've been talking for months and that Daniel was aware that they were talking to other drivers about the seat. Daniel was privy to the exact details (as one would expect) but he knew they were talking to possible replacements. McLaren genuinely wanted and have tried to make their time with Daniel work but it simply hasn't and shows no signs of improvement. The initial contract with Oscar was for a reserve role in 23 with the possibility of a drive should Daniel not improve. Daniel did not improve (and has still not improved) and so the option to make Oscar a McLaren driver was taken up. You'll notice there is no animosity between Daniel and McLaren coming out in the same way there has between Fernando and Alpine since the announcements of parting of ways.
Can you tell me when Otmar confirmed that Oscar told him he signed on July 4th? I did not read that anywhere. I have posted a copy from the TP press conference in Holland when Otmar was asked directly about the July 4th signing his response, this is from the official F1 website:
Q: (Adam Cooper – motorsport.com) Question for Otmar. Obviously this July 4th date for the McLaren contract emerged yesterday. Can you clarify when you found out about it? When did Mark or Oscar tell you what was going on? Did you have any direct contact with McLaren? And secondly, at that time, what was the situation with Williams? Was Oscar walking away from a definite offer to go to Williams? Or was all that also up in the air? Was he thinking he was going to have another year on the sidelines if Fernando stayed?
OS: So as you can imagine, at that point in time, there were some rumours. So, it's not like we were oblivious to it. However, to answer your question, the Fourth of July date was made apparent when we had our submissions to the CRB. So that was a few days ago.
rumors and not an actual July 4th confirmation communicated to the team - either Otmar is lying or Oscar and Mark are lying. There are further questions asked about this and if anyone is interested in reading them - especially the sim room incident, etc.
https://www.formula1.com/en/latest/arti ... qyZCs.html
Planetf1, The Race, likes to just pull certain points from these press conferences and spin a nice story around them and to me the interviews put out by Mark and Oscar were obviously done in an attempt to clear his image, which seems to be working.
Regarding Daniel, he pretty much confirmed that he was in the dark on the July 4th contract date and was unaware of what was going on. Please read, this is from Planetf:
https://www.planetf1.com/news/daniel-ri ... ri-timing/
Daniel Ricciardo insists he was unsure about the timing of McLaren’s negotiations with Oscar Piastri, who has now been confirmed as his fellow Australian’s replacement at the team.
:
The FIA’s Contract Recognition Board has ruled in McLaren’s favour regarding their dispute with Alpine over Piastri’s future.
The Formula 2 champion had shot down Alpine’s announcement that he would replace Aston Martin-bound Fernando Alonso, those events occurring within the space of a couple of hours on August 2.
That was almost three weeks after Ricciardo himself had stated he was “committed to McLaren until the end of next year” in a social media post of his own, while on July 24 team principal Andreas Seidl had said in direct response to a question about Ricciardo and 2023: “He is committed, we are committed from our side, so just need to keep working hard together.”
However, the FIA’s statement of what the Contract Recognition Board had decided said: “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.”
That was the day after the British Grand Prix and nine days before Ricciardo, who has endured a disappointing season-and-a-half since joining McLaren, had pledged his commitment to the team.
So how much did the 33-year-old know about what was going on between McLaren and Piastri?
“To be honest, on the date, that’s the first I’ve heard,” Ricciardo told Sky Italy on free practice day for the Dutch Grand Prix at Zandvoort.
“I’m not aware of obviously timelines and this and that, what the team is discussing.
“To be honest, already, let’s say before that date, let’s say months, we were already discussing, not my future, but of course where we can improve to try to have a better future with the team.
“So I’m aware there was going to be talks ongoing. In terms of timelines, I guess what the team does, let’s say preparing Oscar, that’s not also my business in terms of what they spoke this or that.
“If that’s the case, then so be it. It’s not really my decision to make.”
I am just pointing out what I have been reading...
