by In the wake of Australian rookie Oscar Piastri’s disastrous start to F1 career, fans of compatriot Daniel Ricciardo rubbed their hands in glee as McLaren’s problems were revealed.
The 21-year-old’s debut couldn’t have gone worse, being forced to retire from the Bahrain Grand Prix after just 14 laps after a disappointing 18th on the grid.
The Australian came off very depressed in the pit lane when it became clear McLaren’s engineers would not be able to fix the car’s electronics problem – making him the first driver to retire in 2023.
Considering the kid prodigy was piloted in the seat in place of beloved Ricciardo, it’s a bitter pill to swallow for the Woking-based team.
Riccardo, teammate Lando Norris and McLaren in general had dismal seasons last year and it seems the former has taken the brunt of the blame, with both drivers finishing 11th and 7th respectively as the car experienced trouble after trouble.
Oscar Piastri’s Formula 1 career got off to the worst possible start at the Bahrain GP overnight, with the Australian having to retire after just 14 laps
Daniel Ricciardo (pictured having a great time at last month’s Red Bull launch) fans feel excused after his ax could not solve McLaren’s problems
Despite being the last driver to give McLaren a win in F1 (Italian GP 2021) and still having a year left on his contract, Ricciardo was paid a reported $24 million (AUD) payout not to drive the ill-fated McLaren car in 2023.
So instead of driving a McLaren in the first grand prix of the season and forcing it into yet another humiliating retirement, the extremely popular Australian is now the reserve driver for last year’s Red Bull champion, watching the orange carnage from afar.
And boy, didn’t the Ricciardo fans love it.
“Karma sucks,” one fan wrote, while another stated that “Mick Schumacher and Daniel Ricciardo are the real winners of last season because they don’t have to drive those s**tboxes anymore.”
“Nice to see McLaren, you know what a bed it is. They fucked Ricciardo so I hope they’re having a miserable season,” wrote prominent sportscaster Howard Simon in particular annoyed.
Daniel Ricciardo was the last driver to win a race for McLaren and is shown doing his customary ‘boots’ after winning the 2021 Italian GP
Many fans of Ricciardo’s view essentially absolves his Australian colleague of any responsibility for his retirement – blaming the car alone and the inability of McLaren’s engineers to fix the problems.
Piastri has long been touted as successful in F1 after a heated rise in the rankings, winning both Formula 3 and Formula 2 titles in consecutive seasons as a teenager.
He was clearly devastated that his F1 career didn’t get off to a better start.
“I’ve lost my gearbox,” the disaffected Australian could be heard on the team’s radio.
“The engine was completely dead,” commentator Ted Kravitz told Sky Sports.
“I think he must have turned it off before he got in the box, but now he’s shaking his head and what a pathetic start.
“We all expect him to have a great Grand Prix career, but this is not the first Grand Prix he has wanted. He shakes his head.
Oscar Piastri was gutted after his F1 debut ended in disaster after just 14 laps thanks to problems with his McLaren
Depressed engineers sit with their heads in their hands after failing to solve a mysterious electronics problem with Piastri – forcing him to be the first driver to retire in 2023
After an exceptionally poor pre-season in which the team ran the fewest laps of any team, CEO Zak Brown didn’t immediately know what exactly the problem was.
“Looks like he’s got some kind of electrical problem, a gearbox issue on the track which I think was electronics related,” he said in the race broadcast.
“We swapped handlebars but that didn’t seem to help so we’ll have to diagnose what it is.”
F1 legend turned commentator Nico Rosberg clearly felt the pain of both McLaren drivers.
A spectacular sunset bathed Oscar Piastri’s McLaren in color at the Bahrain International Circuit
“Lando had an extremely tough pit stop. Piastri had a problem. They are slow, they don’t really know why. Unfortunately, it’s a hard start,’ he said.
– It’s hard for Lando. He’s ready to fight for wins and world championships and now he’s kind of stuck there and fighting.
As expected after a dynamite pre-season, both Red Bulls finished first and second respectively, led by reigning champion Max Verstappen. Fernando Alonso of Aston Martin completed the podium.
The paddock will now head to the desert for the Saudi Arabian GP on March 20 (AEST) with McLaren and Piastri desperate to turn the tide.
