Hungarian Grand Prix winner Oscar Piastri admitted he wasn’t sure whether team mate Lando Norris would obey McLaren’s orders to give him the lead of the race.
Piastri took his maiden grand prix victory after leading the majority of the race by beating Norris to the first corner at the start.However, Piastri dropped behind Norris in the final pit cycle when Norris was called in to switch to fresh tyres two laps earlier than his race-leading team mate. This allowed Norris to undercut Piastri and take the lead.
Despite McLaren lobbying him for many laps to hand the lead back to Piastri, Norris remained out front. He eventually slowed to allow Piastri through with three laps remaining, allowing the second-year driver to claim his first ever grand prix victory.
“It’s very, very special,” Piastri said after the race. “This is really the day I dreamed of as a kid – standing on the top step of an F1 podium.
“Obviously [it was] a bit complicated at the end, but I put myself in the right position at the start. Thank you to the team for an amazing effort and an amazing car. It’s a hell of a lot of fun racing with McLaren, so I can’t thank them enough for giving me the opportunity to be in F1. To have a win together 18 months in is an incredible feeling.”
Asked about Norris waiting until the closing laps to let him through, Piastri admitted he had grown more anxious as the chequered flag drew closer.
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“The longer you leave it, of course, the more you get a bit nervous,” he said. “But it was well executed by the team.
“I think it was the right thing. I put myself in the right position at the start and with the different strategy we had, yes, my pace probably wasn’t as quick as I would have liked in the last stint, but I was still in the right position to make it happen. So well executed from the team.”
Piastri’s win was McLaren’s second of the season and the team’s first one-two since 2021. The race winner is confident that McLaren will continue to fight for victories over the rest of the season, including next weekend in Spa-Francorchamps.
“I think we’ve proven this year that we can be quick in any circuit, any condition,” Piastri said. “We’re always there at the front.
“Spa’s not been the happiest of hunting grounds for us recently, but I’m confident we’ll be strong. We’ve got a car that’s become a real all-rounder so I’m super confident and, I think the rest of the team should be as well.”
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2024 Hungarian Grand Prix
- Verstappen names Hungarian GP the most stressful moment of his title-winning year
- McLaren team orders “a new situation we’re inexperienced at handling” – Piastri
- Verstappen dismisses critics of “vocal” radio messages and late-night simracing
- Norris’ former McLaren team mates say he was right to give up win
- Mercedes surprised Hamilton’s car was “completely unscathed” in Verstappen clash
Jere (@jerejj)
21st July 2024, 17:35
Pitting one lap later on the second occasion as well should’ve been done in hindsight, even if the team were nervous about tyre wear as per Stella’s response, but this way, Oscar would’ve rejoined ahead & thus, zero need for swapping.
Overall, McLaren unnecessarily created a difficult situation, not only this way, but also by pitting Lando first on both occasions, even though teams usually pit the driver ahead sooner, even if Stella validly pointed out factors such as SC & undercut possibilities.
Esploratore (@esploratore1)
22nd July 2024, 0:15
Yes, exactly, I was surprised they waited 2 laps, that was basically making sure that norris would come out ahead, in fact I was expecting them to pit piastri first, as he was in the lead and was going for his first win.
powersteer (@powersteer)
23rd July 2024, 8:32
If Mc pitted Oscar 1 lap earlier, that would have compromised his race too, the tyre performance would be too poor compared to the cars around him