Why McLaren accepts Oscar Piastri’s ‘harsh’ penalty in Brazil

McLaren will not seek a right to review Oscar Piastri’s Brazilian Grand Prix, team principal Andrea Stella saying “we accept it, we move on”.

Piastri was hit with a 10-second time penalty at the Interlagos circuit where the stewards ruled he was “wholly responsible” for the collision with Kimi Antonelli at the restart on lap 6 that took Charles Leclerc out of the grand prix.

Oscar Piastri’s Brazilian GP penalty: All we know

⦁ McLaren call out ‘harsh’ penalty in ‘shared’ responsibility
⦁ Explaining why Oscar Piastri was penalised
⦁ Would a ‘right of review’ benefit Piastri?

On a weekend where Lando Norris could not put a foot wrong, Piastri was eager to challenge his teammate for the victory in the grand prix but qualified P4 while Norris was on pole.

Lining up behind Norris, Antonelli and Leclerc, Piastri was unable to make gains at the start but he was handed a second go when the Safety Car came out when Gabriel Bortoleto found himself in the barrier.

The racing resumed at the start of lap 6 where Piastri tried to sneak up the inside of Antonelli into Turn 1 only for there to be contact, which pitched Antonelli sideways into Leclerc.

The Ferrari driver was forced to retire after losing a tyre and suffering suspension damage, while Piastri was given a 10-second penalty for causing a collision.

His team principal Stella called it harsh as he reckons Antonelli shoulders some of the blame for the contact.

“In terms of the penalty, I would say that definitely on the harsh side,” Stella told the media in Brazil.

“Oscar, it’s true, we see a little lock-up, but at the same time, he’s able to maintain the trajectory which is ultimately what counts.

“I think the responsibility should be shared with Kimi because Kimi kind of knew that Oscar was on the inside and the collision probably could have been avoided.

“Perhaps Kimi was also worried of having Leclerc on the outside, a difficult situation obviously, but I think overall the penalty is harsh for Oscar to be considered fully to blame for this incident.”

Explaining why Oscar Piastri was penalised in Brazil

Piastri was penalised for the collision based on Formula 1’s Driving Standards Guidelines.

That states that a car attempting to overtake on the inside of a corner must have have “its front axle at least alongside the mirror of the other car prior to and at the apex” of the corner.

The car must also be “driven in a fully controlled manner particularly from entry to apex, and not have ‘dived in’.”

The stewards ruled that Piastri not only didn’t have his front axle alongside Antonelli’s mirror, he also locked the brakes.

“At the Safety Car restart on Lap 6, Car 81 (Oscar Piastri) attempted to overtake Car 12 (Kimi Antonelli) on the inside of Turn 1,” the stewards noted.

“In doing so, PIA did not establish the required overlap prior to and at the apex, as his front axle was not alongside the mirror of Car 12, as defined in the Driving Standard Guidelines for overtaking on the inside of a corner.

“PIA locked the brakes as he attempted to avoid contact by slowing, but was unable to do so and made contact with ANT. This contact caused ANT to make secondary contact with Car 16 (Charles Leclerc), who was positioned on the outside and was forced to retire from the race as a result.

“PIA was therefore wholly responsible for the collision. A 10-second time penalty and 2 penalty points are considered appropriate and consistent with recent precedents.”

He was therefore penalised 10 seconds and given two penalty points on his Super Licence.

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Would a ‘right to review’ benefit Oscar Piastri?

McLaren can initiate a “right of review” the penalty if the team so wishes, as as Williams did earlier this season.

Carlos Sainz was hit with a 10-second time penalty during the Dutch Grand Prix when the stewards ruled that he was solely to blame for a collision with Liam Lawson.

Both cars received punctures following the incident and dropped to the back of the field, with Sainz going on to serve his penalty at his next pit stop. He was also given two penalty points on his Super Licence.

The Spaniard was fuming, prompting Williams to seek a right of review. Williams presented new 360-degree onboard footage of the incident that was not available during the original decision and the stewards overturned the Spaniard’s penalty.

That, however, didn’t change Sainz’s P13 in the official classification as the race result could not be adjusted retroactively. After all, a 10-second penalty has bigger consequences than just 10 seconds given the driver more often than not loses positions and has to battle back through traffic.

As such while McLaren could seek a right to review, but even if it wins, the only outcome would be that Piastri would drop from six penalty points to four.

Stella confirmed McLaren would not appeal.

“At the same time,” he said, “now it’s done, so I reiterate the respect that we have for the stewards, we accept it, we move on.”

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