Piastri and Norris: Clearing the Air for the Mexican Grand Prix
Oscar Piastri has confirmed that both he and his McLaren teammate, Lando Norris, will start the Mexican Grand Prix from a “clean slate.” This, after Piastri took responsibility for the contact between both drivers in the sprint race of the United States Grand Prix. After undisclosed consequences were imposed on Norris following the incident at the Singapore Grand Prix, Piastri indicated that these have been lifted after a review of the collision in Austin. The McLaren teammates are in an intense battle for the title this season. Piastri leads Norris by 14 points, while Red Bull’s Max Verstappen is 40 points behind Piastri in third position, closing in on both. Both drivers retired from the sprint race in Austin. Piastri attempted to overtake Norris for second place at the first corner, colliding with Nico Hülkenberg’s Sauber on the inside of the corner and subsequently impacting Norris on the outside. The team principal, Andrea Stella, stated that McLaren would review the Austin incident before this weekend’s race in Mexico, and Piastri took the blame.
Oscar Piastri leads the championship with a 14-point lead in the Mexican Grand Prix.
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When asked if that meant the “consequences” for Norris had been lifted, Piastri replied: “Yes, the consequences for Lando have been removed.” Piastri was on the outside of Norris before the collision in Austin and tried to return to the inside of his teammate to make the maneuver. This sudden change of direction caused contact with Hülkenberg, which ultimately led to Piastri colliding with Norris. McLaren is committed to allowing its drivers to compete for the title, as long as there is no contact on the track. Piastri confirmed that it was the aggressive nature of his move on Norris that led him to take responsibility. “Ultimately, it was that,” he stated. “There were many factors involved, but yes, ultimately, that’s what has been decided.” Norris also confirmed that the conversations had taken place and said he was eager to compete on equal terms with Piastri in the remaining races. “Yes, they were pretty easy conversations,” Norris said. “I guess from now on, looking ahead to the rest of the season. It’s as it was before, looking ahead and focusing on myself and doing what I do. Of course, it’s better when there’s nothing in the way or nothing that can be a slight disadvantage, as it was before. So yeah, not much more than that. It was a few quick conversations and looking ahead to the rest of the week.”We have reviewed what happened, something we do every weekend, no matter what happened. I think there is a degree of responsibility on my part in the sprint race. We started this weekend with a clean slate for both of us. Going out to race and seeing who can get to the top.
Oscar Piastri
