Brazilian GP organisers take action after Piastri, Colapinto crash with rain forecast for the GP
Results from the Brazilian GP Sprint, with Oscar Piastri, Nico Hulkenberg, and Franco Colapinto in the wall.
Ahead of a wet-dry Sunday at the Brazilian Grand Prix, race organisers have taken steps to avoid the crash that put Oscar Piastri and Franco Colapinto out of the Sprint by making a small, but notable, change to the Turn 3.
Piastri was running third in Saturday’s 24-lap Sprint, chasing Kimi Antonelli in the hope of challenging his teammate Lando Norris for the win and the much-needed eight points.
The Turn 3 kerb in Brazil proved problematic in the Sprint
However, the Australian driver’s race ended on Lap 6 when he lost control of his McLaren through Turn 3 with Nico Hulkenberg and Franco Colapinto crashing at the same corner within seconds of him.
Antonelli reported to Mercedes that “Norris hit the kerb and a lot of water went on to the [racing] line”.
The Sprint was red flagged with Hulkenberg the only one of the three drivers who crashed able to return to the pit lane, Piastri and Colapinto both out of the race.
Speaking about his crash, Piastri confirmed water brought onto the track from that kerb had played a role.
“I used it [the kerb] a little bit the lap before,” he explained. “Looking back at the lap, I think a couple of the guys ahead also used it and potentially put a bit more water where I went.
“Probably shouldn’t have been on the kerb anyway, but I think the track was in a different state to the lap before as well – and clearly I wasn’t the only one that got caught out by that.
“It was a little bit wide, but nothing major,” he added of his line.
“And I took the same line as the cars ahead, or certainly one of the cars ahead, and unfortunately, the consequences were, were a lot bigger.
“It clearly splashed up quite a lot of water when that happened.
“Again, I probably shouldn’t have been on the kerb, but a bit unfortunate that the consequences were so high.”
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With more rain forecast for Sunday, the Brazilian Grand Prix organisers took action with track workers cutting a makeshift drainage channel in the Turn 3 kerb.
According to The Race, the intention is to ensure that any water collected by the kerb will run away from the track and not form a puddle at the kerb.
More rain is forecast for Sunday’s grand prix with the FIA reporting a “moderate chance of drizzle/light rain coming from the south”.
However, on Sunday morning it was anything by drizzle or light, it bucketed down at the Interlagos circuit.
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