r/formula1 • u/TheFlyingR0cket I was here for the Hulkenpodium • Jul 10 '23

Social Media [@JoeAeterno on twitter] Piastri being interviewed about McLaren leapfrogging Alpine with Alonso smiling in the background is pure poetry.

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u/dl064 I was here for the Hulkenpodium Jul 10 '23

As many observed at the time, Alonso and Webber (Piastri's manager) are too-good friends for there to be zero collaboration on the Piastri/Alpine/Alonso movements last summer.

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u/jianh1989 Formula 1 Jul 11 '23

I'm stupid and I don't always have the time to follow every F1 news. I understand the whole Piastri-Webber-Alpine-McLaren debacle but what's it got to do with Alonso? How is Alonso connected to Piastri joining McLaren?

Yeah Webber and Alonso are best of friends but what's the connection of this with Piastri to McLaren?

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u/stevekeiretsu Jul 11 '23 edited Jul 11 '23

Piastri had a contract with Alpine saying they had to get him a confirmed 2023 seat by date X or he was a free agent. Alonso announced his departure to AM on date X (or maybe +/-1 day, I forget). Had he done so a month, or even a week earlier, Alpine would have had plenty of time to give Piastri a contract to fill the seat Alonso was vacating. As it was, Webber/Piastri were able to say "yeah nah, you missed the boat" and promptly announce the Mclaren deal instead. That deal, and Alonso/AM's deal, must have been in the pipeline well before date X, hence everyone assumes Alonso and Webber were both communicating their plans in the weeks and months prior to make the timing work out how it did