F1 | Alpine, Laurent Rossi on the Piastri case: "Dangerous precedent, we are in pieces"

The Oscar Piastri case has caused discussion in the Formula 1 paddock in recent months. The Australian driver, linked to Alpine as part of the Renault academy, went to McLaren after effectively signing two contracts with both teams. The FIA ​​ruled in favor of the reigning Formula 2 champion, who was therefore free to go to Woking and effectively dealt a blow to the French team. Laurent Rossi, CEO of Alpine, wanted to comment thus between the lines of the official Formula 1 website.

“A dangerous precedent has been created – Rossi said. Thus team academies are at risk, because the big brands and manufacturers invest heavily in young talents. We will look at contracts differently, we will be much more rigorous: we will learn from this situation, we will be less naive about handshakes and we will make binding agreements, and this will certainly be less friendly. Then we ask ourselves: we invest a lot in supporting talent, but is it worth it? You spend money to develop them and then they go away, and it's hard to accept that because you're investing in something you believe in."

“We believe in young people, it is a mantra of the Renault Group. Our values ​​say we believe in them and therefore we want to defend this idea. We will respect our commitment to all the kids in our academy, but we are asking ourselves whether it is really worth it and continuing, or stopping. We believe in the value of the system but we do not feel protected. It was a great disappointment, we are in pieces."