FIA F2
Piastri to use 10-week F2 break to discuss future plans
Oscar Piastri will use the two and half month break between Formula 2 rounds to discuss his future, admitting a Formula 1 reserve driver role at Alpine next year would be helpful.
Tom Howard
Edited: Sep 27, 2021, 3:50 PM
Copy link
Share on Viber
The Australian appears unlikely to graduate to an F1 race seat next year and could face a year on the sidelines despite emerging as the favourite to win the F2 championship this year.
After scoring his second feature race win in Sochi, Piastri has opened up a 36-point lead over Guanyu Zhou, who is among the leading contenders to snare the remaining 2022 F1 drive at Alfa Romeo.
The 20-year-old Alpine Academy driver has openly admitted that his F1 chances for 2022 are slim and is targeting a reserve driver role at Alpine.
While such a role would most likely see Piastri without a race drive in 2022, being a reserve driver could prove beneficial preparation for stepping up to F1 in the future, following confirmation it will be mandatory for teams to run rookie drivers in several FP1 sessions next year.
“I will see if Alpine has got anything planned and most likely I will try to work out plans for next year because we certainly have a lot of time to discuss it now,” said Piastri when asked what he will do in the 10-week gap before the next F2 round in Saudi Arabia.
When questioned about the benefits of a reserve driver role, he added: “It [a reserve driver role] would be helpful and helpful for all the young guys coming up getting those FP1 sessions.
“That is what we are targeting at the moment and it would most likely lead to a year on the sidelines which is never ideal, but it is not the first person it has happened to and it won’t be the last.
“I still have to win this championship to make that happen so there is still a lot of things that can happen between now and then but that is definitely what we are targeting.
“It is of course not ideal to not be racing, as that as racing drivers is what we love to do naturally.
“That is a sacrifice I’m willing to take if it leads to a race seat for the following year.”
Read Also:
Next year’s plans hinge on what happens in the F2 title race as Piastri would be unable to return to the category in 2022 should he win the title under the current championship regulations.
Despite holding a healthy points lead, Piastri is refusing to label himself as the championship favourite heading into the final two rounds in Saudi Arabia and Abu Dhabi in December.
“I’m not going to call myself the favourite but I think my lead is the biggest its been and I feel like I’m driving well and the team has been doing a great job with the car,” he added.
“I think we have been strong since round 1 and we have been on the podium in every feature race except for Bahrain, so that is testament to the whole package. I’m glad I’m in the position I’m in and not having to chase.
“It is nice to have that gap and now I have got two and half months to dream about that but I still want to extend that more and make it a little bit more comfortable, because with the format this year, everything can change in a blink of an eye. I’m not getting ahead of myself.”
Oscar Piastri, Prema Racing
Photo by: James Gasperotti / Motorsport Images
We want your opinion!
What would you like to see on Motorsport.com?
Take our 5 minute survey.
- The Motorsport.com Team
Read and post comments
Read also :
Share Or Save This Story
Copy link
Share on Viber
Previous article F2 Sochi: Piastri strengthens title push with feature race win
Next article HWA reveals it will exit F2 at the end of 2021 season
Top Comments
There are no comments at the moment. Would you like to write one?
View More & Comment
More from
Tom Howard
Sebastien Loeb tests again as Project Rally One submits WRC homologation papers
WRC
WRC
Sebastien Loeb tests again as Project Rally One submits WRC homologation papers
New WRC constructor offers update on 2027 car development
WRC
WRC
Rally Saudi Arabia
New WRC constructor offers update on 2027 car development
More from
Oscar Piastri
What's behind Oscar Piastri's split with Mark Webber – and what it means for his F1 career
Formula 1
Formula 1
Sao Paulo GP
What's behind Oscar Piastri's split with Mark Webber – and what it means for his F1 career
Oscar Piastri splits from Mark Webber management
Formula 1
Formula 1
Sao Paulo GP
Oscar Piastri splits from Mark Webber management
More from
Prema Powerteam
The Rosin family leaves Prema after more than 40 years
FIA F2
FIA F2
The Rosin family leaves Prema after more than 40 years
Aston Martin announces 17-year-old German driver for 2026 F1 Academy campaign
F1 Academy
F1 Academy
Las Vegas
Aston Martin announces 17-year-old German driver for 2026 F1 Academy campaign
Doriane Pin crowned 2025 F1 Academy champion after gripping Las Vegas race
F1 Academy
F1 Academy
Las Vegas
Doriane Pin crowned 2025 F1 Academy champion after gripping Las Vegas race
Latest news
With the Qatar MotoGP Grand Prix over, it is time to heal the wounds
MotoGP
MGP MotoGP
Qatar GP
2 min
With the Qatar MotoGP Grand Prix over, it is time to heal the wounds
Max Verstappen on Ferrari clashes: "I would never sign two number-one drivers"
Formula 1
F1 Formula 1
Sao Paulo GP
58 min
Max Verstappen on Ferrari clashes: "I would never sign two number-one drivers"
Austin Cindric wins Ford Veterans Day Classic at Daytona
General
Misc General 6 h
Austin Cindric wins Ford Veterans Day Classic at Daytona
Subscribe and access Motorsport.com with your ad-blocker.
From Formula 1 to MotoGP we report straight from the paddock because we love our sport, just like you. In order to keep delivering our expert journalism, our website uses advertising. Still, we want to give you the opportunity to enjoy an ad-free and tracker-free website and to continue using your adblocker.
You have 2 options:
- Become a subscriber.
- Disable your adblocker.
Subscribe now Already subscribed? Sign in here
Already disabled your adblocker?
Reload page
Manage Alerts
Subscribe