What ‘foolish’ Piastri contract saga means for F1

Naturally, the French team were of the opinion that Piastri would fill the void being the No.1 pick in the team’s junior program.

However, an offer from McLaren and holes in Piastri’s contract with Alpine ultimately allowed him to jump ship.

The young Australian’s contract with Alpine went before the contract recognition board and it was found the team had no legs to stand on.

Rossi said his team’s undoing was ultimately down to how poorly structured their contract with Piastri was.

“We learnt a lot to be honest, and we’d be foolish not to learn from that,” said Rossi on the Beyond The Grid podcast.

“We learnt a couple of things. I would say there’s no such thing as loyalty, especially when individual interests are at stake. It’s difficult to combine both for people that are sometimes a bit too young to weigh the pros and cons of both.

“And then we also learnt that we were insufficiently prepared in a couple of areas, especially in the way we structure our contracts with the academy drivers and the way we transfer that into the Formula 1 world. Which, I guess, everyone was, because you heard Toto (Wolff) and Christian (Horner) I believe saying it was going to set a precedent. 

“We learnt that we left too many doors open in our contract, because no one thought that those people would just go and leave using that open door. It would only be normal to come back to the team that helped you.”

That sentiment is echoed by Mercedes boss, as Rossi alluded to.

The team principal of the Silver Arrows said late last year that the Piastri case has set a standard for other drivers working their way up the ladder.

“What I really stand firm for is that all of us constructors are investing a lot of money in our junior programmes,” said Wolff.

“We invest human resources that go to the go-kart tracks, to the junior formulas, and in some cases, it’s little money, some cases it’s more.

“To know now that a precedent has been set that if you’re clever you can manoeuvre yourself out is something that’s clearly not good for the industry.

“So, we will be employing even more lawyers for even stricter contracts. But for me, I believe in the integrity also of the drivers we have.

“I think we need to be positive, to try and find talent and develop them. But hope on the character.”

It’s been a tough lesson to learn, one which will affect how Alpine and more than likely how other teams treat their junior drivers to avoid such situations repeating.

Already, the team has tweaked the contracts of its Alpine Academy drivers, of which young Australian Jack Doohan is part of.

“We’ve changed that already. We’re a bit more corporate and protective of our contracts now. It’s a bit more stringent if you want to sign something with Alpine.

“It’s less of ‘let’s shake hands and we’re happy you’re here in the family’. You’re still in the family, but you’re in the family with a contract.

“It’s like your kids have a contract with the parents. It’s a bit sad, but it’s the way it is. You never expect your kids to leave the bedroom one night and never show up again, and you certainly don’t put locks and contracts. We were forced to do that a bit.

“I guess it goes with the evolution of also the industry, with more stakes, more money involved, which potentially can make your head spin a bit every now and then.

“So we have to come to terms with it. We’re getting more and more professional, which means we need to be more and more professional in every single aspect of the sport, including the way we’re contracting.”

The Formula 1 season continues with the Saudi Arabian Grand Prix on March 20.

For a daily dose of the best of the breaking news and exclusive content from Wide World of Sports, subscribe to our newsletter by clicking here!

Every 2022 Formula 1 car revealed across three-day pre-season testing