Oscar Piastri’s title hopes suffer blow after 10-second penalty for collision with Antonelli costs him podium finish in Sao Paulo Grand Prix
SAO PAULO: Oscar Piastri remained philosophical about his championship prospects following a controversial penalty that dashed his podium hopes at the Sao Paulo Grand Prix.
The Australian McLaren driver received a 10-second penalty for a collision with Mercedes’ Kimi Antonelli during a Safety Car restart on lap six.
Piastri locked up at Turn One while challenging for second position, making contact with Antonelli’s car which subsequently collided with Charles Leclerc’s Ferrari.
The incident forced Leclerc to retire with front wing damage, ending his race prematurely.
Despite emerging in second place behind teammate Lando Norris and leading for nine laps during pit stops, the penalty ultimately relegated Piastri to fifth position.
The result leaves Piastri 24 points behind Norris in the drivers’ championship standings after the British driver secured his second consecutive victory.
“I had a very clear opportunity and I went for it,” Piastri explained.
“The other two drivers on the outside braked quite late. There was obviously a bit of a lock-up into the corner, but that’s because I could see Kimi was not going to give me any space.”
Leclerc offered support for Piastri’s perspective on the controversial incident.
“Oscar was optimistic, but Kimi knew that Oscar was on the inside I think and he kind of did the corner like Oscar was never there,” Leclerc stated.
“For me, the blame is not all on Oscar. It was optimistic, but this could have been avoided.”
McLaren team principal Andrea Stella said he needed to review the incident thoroughly before commenting further.
Piastri vowed to continue fighting for the championship across the final three rounds in Las Vegas, Doha and Abu Dhabi.
“I’ll just try to get the most out of it as I can,” he said.
“I think today the penalty was one thing, but I don’t think the pace was at a level I wanted it to be.” – AFP
