Oscar Piastri to Ferrari ‘could be coming from Red Bull’ says former F1 driver
Amidst tension at McLaren, Oscar Piastri has been linked with a surprise move to Ferrari.
Juan Pablo Montoya has hypothesised that Red Bull could be behind rumours linking Oscar Piastri to Ferrari as a way of destabilising McLaren.
McLaren’s team harmony is currently under the microscope after Lando Norris hit Piastri in the opening lap of the Singapore Grand Prix and the Australian felt that broke the previous rules of engagement.
Oscar Piastri Ferrari link could be Red Bull ploy says Montoya
Piastri’s audible frustration along with other questionable decisions the team have made over the years saw rumours begin to emerge that the Australian was contemplating a move away.
The most recent link had him heading to Maranello and joining Ferrari but ex-McLaren man Montoya believes rumours are often put out there by rival teams to destabilise their opponents.
“The big question there is it just people stirring the pot, making stories up,” Montoya told a gambling platform of the Ferrari links. “At the end of the day, it’s a great way of stirring the pot and causing problems for McLaren.
“It’s a little like what Toto [Wolff] did with Max [Verstappen]. Did he have a genuine chance of getting Max? Who knows. But it made headlines.
“The story about Piastri and Ferrari could be coming from Red Bull, for example.
MORE ON PIASTRI FROM PLANET.F1.COM
👉 McLaren’s new priority? Why F1 title defeat won’t crush Lando Norris or Oscar Piastri
👉 Zak Brown responds to ‘ludicrous’ Oscar Piastri claim amid Alex Palou legal case
👉 Oscar Piastri warned Lando Norris asset ‘counts for a lot’ by McLaren champion
“Somebody at Red Bull could be going, ‘This would be a great leak, just to stir up the pot and destabilise McLaren.’
“But at the same time, if you think Oscar is really good and know other teams want him, then this is a great way of saying on behalf of Oscar to McLaren, ‘If you want me, you’ve got to respect me.’
“But for McLaren today, the team is above the driver.”
Montoya said his former team McLaren need to let their drivers go racing now that the Constructors’ is decided.
“They need to let them compete against each other. You still need to be a unified team, and you still need to have the ultimate goal, that is to win as a team. That is really important. I think [Andrea] Stella [team principal] does an amazing job keeping the whole thing together.
“But in the races, they need to let them be more flexible.
“McLaren understands that everybody working together is for the benefit of the team and the long-term benefit of the team and that’s really important. But they’re stuck in a really difficult situation.
“For the individual drivers, they know that this might be it; this might be the only chance in their careers of being a World Champion.
“You don’t want to go home at the end of the race in Abu Dhabi thinking, ‘Man, I was too nice. I was going to pass this guy, and I didn’t because I didn’t want to piss anyone off.’
“That’s not F1, you’ve got to go for it.
“The best way for them is to reinforce the need for the drivers to respect each other from now to the end of the year.
“Remember that you’re still going to be working together next year and we need the best partnership possible. So go at it, have fun but be respectful.
“Race hard but race with respect.”
Read next: Could Christian Horner’s F1 comeback really be with Ferrari?
