Alpine boss Otmar Szafnauer claims show Daniel Ricciardo has options, Mercedes Ring, Oscar Piastri failure, McLaren

The Australian F1 veteran made headlines for the midterm break in F1 when it was reported that he was moving to 21-year-old compatriot Oscar Piastri.

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News erupted after last week Fernando Alonso blinded the F1 world when he jumped Vacancy for Sebastian Vettel 2023 Aston Martin.

Alpine later announced that Piastri would replace Alonso. Melburnian in denial seat, Bold move by a man who has never driven an F1 car so angry.

but the news It was leaked over the weekend that Piastri was scheduled to sit in Ricciardo’s seat.McLaren planned to release an eight-time race winner for the prodigious youngster.

After two disastrous seasons at Papaya, Ricciardo’s career is at a crossroads. Other than winning at Monza in 2021.

Ricciardo was regularly beaten by team-mate Lando Norris and had trouble understanding the car.

The 32-year-old left Renault for McLaren but could return to the team. The Enstone unit is now branded Alpine and they are open to relocation.

Alpine still believes it has an ironclad deal with Piastri despite reports that the FIA’s contract approval committee has approved Piastri’s move and still plans for the young Australian to take a seat is doing.

Guanyu Zhou, an Alfa Romeo rookie and former Renault Academy driver, said he was happy that he “didn’t get stuck” with Alpine.team boss Otmar Szafnauer believes his team is well suited to attack the top teams.

Former Aston Martin boss Szafnauer said of Alonso’s decision: “I think I know all the individuals here better than I do yet because he spent 12 years on other teams.

“And I know they have hired a few more people since I left in December. So I know what they’re trying to do.

“And I know the people out there, and I know this team here, and I know that both teams have huge potential.

“But as we sit here today, this team is performing at a much higher level. I have no doubt that we will continue to perform at our level.

Alpine is currently fourth in the constructors’ standings with 99 points, behind Red Bull, Ferrari and Mercedes and four points behind McLaren. Aston Martin is 9th on his 20 points.

Szafnauer also said Alpine is not finished with fourth place.

“We have an internal program called Mountain Climber, which is to hire an additional 75 people in strategic areas that will help improve the capabilities of this team,” he said.

“With 75 employees, we have tools that are currently being improved, simulation tools, new simulators, expanded manufacturing capacity, upgraded wind tunnels, all focused on winning 100 races.

“So those things are still happening here, and they are going fast.

“So I’m confident that in the period that Fernando is there, we can outperform the team that Fernando is going to.”

Ricciardo scored 119 points for Renault in 2020. This is the best record for a driver since Renault returned to the sport in 2016.

There is no doubt that he will be a strong choice for Alpine.

However, in an interview with Confidential informationSzafnauer said he had narrowed the candidate list down to four drivers and revealed he had responded to “14 calls from interested drivers.”

ESPN’s Nate Sanders He added that Ricciardo “will get the attention of teams up and down the grid”, adding that he is “one of the most marketable drivers on the grid at the moment and one of America’s most popular drivers.” added.

He added that four teams had contacted him in the past two weeks before news that McLaren was moving to dispose of McLaren in Western Australia.

The ExpressIt has even hinted that McLaren’s payment to Ricciardo and a mandatory season on the sidelines could open up Mercedes.

Ricciardo has long coveted a Ferrari or Mercedes seat and Silver Arrows said “we always had our eye on Ricciardo”.

37-year-old seven-time world champion Lewis Hamilton has long been associated with retirement.

When Ricciardo joined Renault in 2019, Mercedes boss Toto Wolff said he caught their eye but didn’t pull the trigger.

“We always had our eye on Daniel…I really like him here,” Wolff said at the time. “It’s a Mercedes mentality. Sometimes when you’re happy with a relationship, it’s not always easy[to change].

“It’s like being married and you have to stand by it 100%. It means that

Likely? Not at this stage, but something strange happened.

first published as ‘Moving fast’: Alpine claims show Daniel Ricciardo has options