🔗 Share this article

McLaren Formula 1 bosses Zak Brown and Andrea Stella pointed to opposing racers for the collision between Piastri and Lando Norris at the beginning of the US GP sprint event.

The Australian driver, ahead of his teammate in the championship by twenty-two points, made contact with his team-mate after colliding with the Hulkenberg.

The collision took both team drivers out of the race, along with Aston Martin's Fernando Alonso, who was on the inner side of Hulkenberg.

Team Executives Express Disappointment Over Crash

Zak Brown, McLaren Racing's chief executive officer, commented to broadcasters that some of the driving at the front was "inexperienced", stating: "Obviously Hulkenberg made contact with Piastri and he had no business being where he was."

McLaren F1 boss Stella stated: "The reaction is that we are disappointed that we were denied the possibility to compete."

"It's surprising that some racers with a lot of expertise don't act with necessary care. Go to the initial turn, make sure you don't damage other drivers and continue."

McLaren suggested that the team principal was mentioning both the Sauber driver and Alonso.

Contrasting Views on the Incident

Nevertheless, 1996 world champion Hill, providing analysis for a sports broadcast, said he believed Piastri had not demonstrated enough understanding of the risks of the first corner of an F1 race when he decided to cut back to try to overtake his teammate.

Piastri had a better start than the Briton and initially competed on the outside on the ascending entry to the corner.

But he then cut back in an effort to get a advantage on his teammate on the way out, only to collide with the Sauber driver.

Racer Comments After the Collision

The McLaren driver said: "Not ideal but I did not see what happened, I tried to move inside on Lando and we were both very far from the apex and then got a hit and it sent me into Lando. Unfortunate."

His teammate commented: "I just got hit, right? I was not at fault. Behind us things happened and I just got unlucky and was struck because of it. I am unsure. I need to look a bit more thoroughly. It's more people further back just being a bit careless and we are the result of that."

Alonso said: "At one point I thought I was in the right place on the inner side, but some vehicles came very fast from the outer side changing direction and then I was there in the center."

The Sauber driver, who had earned a season-best fourth place, said: "Big frustrations. All the strong performance from yesterday in the trash. Just chaotic."

"Piastri steered inward pretty forcefully trying to get the inside line and way out of the first corner but I can't just disappear."

"I had Alonso attack on the inside and I was unable to see him any more. I aimed to leave space for him and then Oscar turned in and the contact was unavoidable."

Post-Crash and Team Response

McLaren will analyze the incident with their racers but only after the event weekend. Both vehicles needed extensive work before qualifying session at 10 PM BST on Saturday.

The team principal said: "In general disappointed but we take it on the chin, we are now concentrating on fixing the vehicles, there is a lot to do and then we will resume the event from there."

"Our team holds a strong position from our performance point of view so I hope we have the possibility to compete, race normally and utilize our performance."

"Championship points are the key thing, I prefer not to talk about mal-intent, just caution. A bit more prudence would be beneficial for all involved."

Championship Implications

The race was won by the Verstappen, who gained ground on both team racers in the championship - he is now fifty-five points behind the Australian and 33 adrift of the Briton.

Stella said: "The implication is what the numbers show - we missed out on eight points with both racers, but we focus on ourselves. We have a very competitive vehicle and two skilled racers. We look forward to just some standard competition."

Verstappen said he was taking the title race race by race.

United States Grand Prix

17-19 October, with race from 8 PM BST on the final day

Live commentary on sports radio, additional channels and extra coverage; real-time updates on sports website and app