McLaren has confirmed the team will review the opening-lap clash that saw both drivers retire from the Sprint Race at the Formula 1 United States Grand Prix.
Starting behind Max Verstappen in second and third, both Lando Norris and Oscar Piastri were in prime position to challenge the Red Bull driver for the victory.
However, their races lasted all but one corner at the Circuit of the Americas on Saturday.
Going into Turn 1, Piastri was tagged by Nico Hulkenberg’s Sauber, sending the Australian into his team-mate, causing terminal damage to both McLaren cars.
The crash dealt a substantial blow to McLaren’s weekend, costing both drivers points against Verstappen, who secured the win, and valuable data for the race.
Despite the disappointment, McLaren boss Andrea Stella has stressed that the incident had no impact on Norris and Piastri missing out on pole to Verstappen.
“Obviously, we’ve had a couple of conversations with both Lando and Oscar, but those discussions were fundamentally about resetting,” Stella told media including Motorsport Week.
“In racing, you can’t look backwards too much, especially when you have qualifying ahead. So, it was about moving on.”
However, the team are not simply forgetting the incident. Stella revealed that, like in Singapore, the situation will be analysed internally following the race weekend.
“As usual, we’ll review the incident properly at the right time, collaboratively, with the team and the drivers, and we’ll make the right assessment,” he explained.
“This is how we handle such situations within our racing framework, and both Lando and Oscar were comfortable with this approach.”
Regardless, Stella has concurred with McLaren CEO Zak Brown that the contact would have been avoided had there had been more care from other drivers around.
“What I said straight after the Sprint was that a bit more prudence, especially from experienced drivers, when they’re in good positions, would have been helpful.
“And that this is still my opinion.”
Norris reflects on damaging crash to title ambitions
Norris, who lost out on the chance to gain points on Piastri, echoed Stella’s words, citing there was no point in assigning blame before a full review had taken place.
The Briton who was instantly wiped out in the collision believes the team should take time to understand what happened before drawing conclusions.
“Like all things we do as a team, it’ll be reviewed,” Norris said.
“I think it probably takes a bit more time to understand everything, and certainly just before qualifying and probably before the race tomorrow is not the best time.”
The crash not only ended Norris’s Sprint early but also compromised his preparation for the main race.
“I was pretty unlucky to not have a chance to race earlier,” he added.
“And, yeah, that’s not just hurt me yesterday or today, but also for the race tomorrow in terms of preparation.
“So, yeah, it was a difficult time. But I said what I said, and I won’t add any more.”
READ MORE – McLaren blasts ‘amateur hour driving’ that eliminated both drivers from F1 US GP Sprint
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