Despite being embroiled in one of the sport’s biggest dramas last year, F1 veteran Daniel Ricciardo and upstart Oscar Piastri were spotted enjoying one another's company.
The summer saga began when Alpine announced last August that the 21-year-old would replace Fernando Alonso next season, who was set to join Aston Martin. However, the youngster announced soon after he had no plans to join Alpine and was instead keen on a move to McLaren with Ricciardo set to depart.
The Woking-based outfit did eventually acquire the services of Piastri leaving Alpine furious, with Ricciardo’s contract terminated to make space for the rookie. Since then the 33-year-old has since become a reserve driver for his former team Red Bull. Despite how negotiations played out, there was no reported tension or unrest between the two Aussie drivers and the pair have now been spotted together on the streets of Melbourne.
The pair were photographed in a snazzy orange McLaren sports car uploaded to twitter by user @CRASH_NET_F1, having been originally posted by AidenBuckleigh on Reddit. Piastri was behind the wheel with Ricciardo in the passenger seat. The eight-time F1 race winner has previously insisted that there are no hard feelings between himself and his compatriot, despite how things turned out last year.
"It was just how the chips fell," Ricciardo told the In the Fast Lane podcast. "He was in the situation, but it's not like he created the situation. It was just a product of all these things happening and then, okay, he's the guy, and that's it.
"Of course Mark [Webber, Piatri's agent] has a job to do as well, trying to find his driver a seat. I get how people were like, 'Oh, you know, doing that to another Aussie!', and blah, blah, blah, but I certainly didn't view it like that or take it as it seemed from the outside. We were all just trying to do the best we could."
Piastri, who will make his hotly-anticipated F1 season debut this year, previously revealed Ricciardo reached out to insist there were no hard feelings after taking his spot alongside Lando Norris at McLaren. "Him getting in touch like that, that was great for me personally, knowing that there were no hard feelings,” Piastri shared.
"That really helps me quite a lot, and it was good to get in touch. It was a nice moment. If I can get close to emulating the success he's had on track and the character he is off the track, I think I'll be doing a reasonable job.”
Although Ricciardo rarely got the better of Norris at McLaren, he will no doubt have some priceless tips to help his countryman put pressure on the talented Brit.
Ahead of what promises to be a successful F1 career, the former F2 champion Piastri posted a video to Instagram earlier today, captioned: “It’s been great to be home in Melbourne for a break. Ready to jump into the F1 season now!”
