Oscar Piastri believes grid penalty for impeding Kevin Magnussen cost him potential podium.

While it was Mas Verstappen who got all the attention, Piastri's Q3 lap was equally sensational, the youngster just 0.074s down on th world champion.

However, he was subsequently handed a 3-place grid drop for impeding the Haas driver, a mistake for which his team took the blame.

"The warning from our race engineer was a little late," admitted team boss Andrea Stell on Saturday. "Actually, Oscar checks the mirrors, as we have explained to the stewards. He sees that Magnussen is arriving. He assessed the situation: do I go to the left? There's grass. To the right, there is grass. If I stop at the apex, I'm certainly going to impede. If I cut the chicane, I'm going on the gravel.

"So he realises the best thing to do is just to go through the chicane as fast as possible, which is what he does. He actually goes full throttle, he cuts over the kerbs."

Nonetheless the stewards were not impressed and as a result the Australian started from the third row as opposed to the front alongside Verstappen.

Staring at Carlos Sainz' exhaust for the opening section of the race, the undercut subsequently worked in Piastri's favour, and while he was now ahead of the Spaniard he spent the remainder of the afternoon around 15s behind the second Ferrari.

"Starting further back, I think that was the biggest thing today," said the youngster. "I think the pace was honestly really good.

"In the first stint we were strong, just stuck behind Carlos," he continued. "Then the second stint, pushed very hard at the start to undercut him and then also to try and get Leclerc. Just with the tyres, they just don't like being pushed, so I just struggled a bit after that, looked like Charles had a very similar thing."

Speaking after the race, Stella admitted he understood the driver's frustration.

"I think Oscar pushed as much as he could in this race," he said. "I am saying this because looking at his data and speaking to his tyre engineers he is pushing at the limit at the end, so Oscar I think he went flat-out and I don't think he could have gone any faster. I think in managing the budget overall, Leclerc was a little bit more than Oscar and he could retain the podium.

"It's a little bit of a shame for Oscar," he added, "because the performance he deployed yesterday, he had the performance over the weekend to score a podium.

"We take the blame for that because the reason he got the penalty was impeding and that was to do with our operations, it doesn't have to do with Oscar making any mistake at all, it was a situation created by the team. But I am sure Oscar will have opportunities in the future."

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READERS COMMENTS

1. Posted by kenji, 21/05/2024 0:03

"@ffracer...you make some very valid points. It seems quite obvious to me that Norris gets the benefit whenever there are competitive intrateam choices to be made. IMO Piastri has suffered the most of the 'downcalls' since he arrived last year. The team claim that the team comes first, and that's their prerogative, but any chain is only as strong as its weakest link, an adage not to be made light of. MacLaren need to be cognisant of this in assessing whether or not this favouritsm will lead to dissatisfaction as Piastri gets more comfortable. I'm sure that Piastri is fully aware of what's gone down and that he's keeping his powder dry ATM. Norris has a great turn of speed and is a competent driver which is how it should be given his six years in F1. Fortunately Piastri is being guided/mentored by Masrtk Webber who knows a thing or two when it comes to internicine warfare!."

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2. Posted by ffracer, 20/05/2024 11:44

"Agreed @ Kenji.

Gotta feel for the genuine Piastri (again) and maligned Magnussen... but the penalty outweighed the crime on this one. Stella was right to lay blame at the pitwall for this: Imola's hallowed narrow ribbon of rolling asphalt and the few minutes of qualifying, coupled with busy drivers in busy cockpits make vital warning radio calls from pit of fast approaching cars crucial in today's F1. Great maturity in Piastri and Stella, can't wait for a most worthy Piastri and McLaren to get it all right for a win! Keep your focus and your head down Oscar, it's coming soon. "

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3. Posted by kenji, 20/05/2024 8:58

""I'm sure Oscar will have opportunities in the future'. What a milksop statement to make in light of the mistake. Drivers have a shelf life and an opportunity for a podium/win missed can never be made up. Once that chance goes it's gone forever. I expected more from MacLaren who are on the cusp of cracking the big time vis a vis winning races. Quali and the subsequent race gave us a glimpse of Piastri's potential and he should be getting equal billing with the favoured son. IMO this is not really happening as witnessed by the allocation of the full upgrade package which appeared on Piastri's car at the same time that Ferrari's package was also introduced making it more difficult to compete. I am just hoping that Oscar can pull of a blinder in Monaco quali. and race for a podium."

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Piastri rues penalty handicap

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