Piastri reveals how McLaren settled Singapore dispute after costly crash with Norris
Photo: Race Pictures
Tobia is a Formula 1 journalist at GPblog with experience at international circuits. Since 2022, he has covered Grands Prix across Europe, delivering reliable coverage and insights from the paddock.
Oscar Piastri has expressed his satisfaction with how McLaren handled his collision with Lando Norris during the Singapore Grand Prix Sprint, insisting that the team has dealt with the incident appropriately. The Australian is now ready to move on as McLaren looks to recover from a challenging period.
Piastri satisfied with McLaren's response to Singapore incident
The two McLaren drivers collided on the final lap of the Singapore Sprint, when Norris attempted to overtake his team-mate at Turn 5. Both drivers spun following the contact, with Piastri retiring after hitting the barriers while Norris recovered to finish eighth.
Although the stewards decided against taking further action, McLaren team principal Andrea Stella described the incident as 'unacceptable' and confirmed that the matter would be reviewed internally. Norris subsequently accepted responsibility for the collision, admitting that he should not have attempted the move.
Speaking ahead of the United States Grand Prix, Piastri was asked about the discussions within McLaren and whether he was satisfied with the way the situation was resolved: "I've been happy with how things have been dealt with. I think the team and Zak and Andrea have handled things the way they should have been, so that's been fine."
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Foto: RacePictures
"It's been a challenging year for us, definitely. I think in the middle of the season, we felt like we'd gained some momentum and potentially we were back to being able to fight for wins and regular podiums. That's often the way in F1. You think you're there again, and you've got a few teams around you to pull you down a few pegs. Hopefully we can find a bit more performance in the rest of the season."
"I think in terms of going back to Singapore, I think it was dealt with appropriately, and we're ready to go racing again."
McLaren faces growing pressure from Red Bull
McLaren's recent difficulties have also been reflected in the Constructors' Championship standings. Following the Azerbaijan Grand Prix, the British team held a 43-point advantage over Red Bull, but that gap has since narrowed considerably.
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Max Verstappen's consecutive victories in Malaysia and Singapore have helped Red Bull close to within just seven points of McLaren, leaving the two teams separated by a narrow margin heading into the final six rounds of the season.
The Singapore collision proved particularly costly, with McLaren collecting just one point from the Sprint instead of the nine Norris and Piastri were on course to secure. The team recovered on Sunday, with Norris finishing fourth and Piastri fifth, although neither driver managed to challenge for a podium position.
The United States Grand Prix now offers McLaren another opportunity to improve its performance, with the team looking to defend its position against Red Bull while closing the gap to Ferrari in the Constructors' Championship.
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