Oscar Piastri has insisted that McLaren’s stance on team orders remains “clear”, despite being told not to overtake Lando Norris in Formula 1‘s Australian Grand Prix.
Piastri experienced heartbreak on home soil last weekend as a probable podium slipped through his grasp when he span with 13 laps to go in changeable conditions.
The Australian, who recovered to ninth, had still been in contention to win the race prior to that moment as he was running behind team-mate Norris in a McLaren 1-2.
Piastri had spied his chance earlier in the race to pass Norris as he pumped in successive fastest laps as the track dried to cut the gap down to less than one second.
But while McLaren approached the campaign adamant that both drivers would be allowed to race, Piastri’s race engineer Tom Stallard instructed him to hold position.
Piastri obliged, with McLaren boss Andrea Stella explaining how concern over navigating lapped cars and an uncertain weather radar triggered the side’s intervention.
The home hero divulged that he intended to hold discussions with the team about the situation, but he denied suggestions that the call was made to prioritise Norris.
“I think today’s race and the circumstances were pretty extreme,” Piastri told media including Motorsport Week.
“We were approaching back markers, one dry line, not knowing if there was going to be rain to come.
“So I’ll speak to the team and try and understand better what the thinking was, but I think it’s always clear that those kind of calls can come in either direction.”
Piastri suggests Australia win was improbable
The decision would be rendered irrelevant to the eventual race outcome as Piastri becoming beached in the grass on Lap 44 resigned him to a damage limitation run.
Piastri has indicated that he would have struggled to overhaul Norris regardless, though, admitting that his mid-race charge had seen him use up the grip on his tyres.
“Yeah, we were holding position before that,” he added.
“I think by the time we were free to race I kind of killed my front left a little bit getting to the back of Lando, so by that point there wasn’t much I could do.
“So I think that was probably a pretty minor moment in today’s race.”
McLaren denies intervention impacted Piastri
As Piastri alluded to, McLaren had permitted him to race Norris, but a wide moment at Turn 6 handed the Briton, who would go on to secure the win, breathing room.
Asked whether the previous instruction had upset Piastri’s momentum, Brown told Sky Sports F1: “I don’t think that had anything to do with it.
“We- Andrea and I on the pit wall – actually just kind of released him to go racing, and we just wanted to make sure we cleared the traffic.
“So that was a hold for a moment, and then it looked like he dropped a wheel and then fell back a bit of a gap.
“But I just think they were pushing really hard in very tricky conditions.”
READ MORE – McLaren reveals Lando Norris won F1 Australian GP with ‘badly damaged’ floor
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