Oscar Piastri finished second in a one-two victory for McLaren at Silverstone, trailing behind his teammate and race winner, Lando Norris. However, the Australian was far from ecstatic after the race. Piastri had initially anticipated a win in the UK, but was handed a hefty ten-second penalty during the race. He declared this penalty to be highly unjust after the Grand Prix.
Max Verstappen had to brake hard during the British GP to avoid overtaking race leader Piastri behind the safety car. Had the Australian suddenly slowed down? The stewards investigated the incident and delivered a damning verdict – Piastri was given a ten-second penalty. He served his penalty in the pit lane during the final stages of the race, which allowed teammate Lando Norris to inherit the win.
“Yes, that penalty was very unjust,” Piastri told F1TV. “We had a fast car today, and I showed what I wanted to show. It’s just disappointing that you don’t get the result you deserve,” he added, clearly irritated. “I braked for the corner and saw that the lights on the safety car were almost off, so I decided not to accelerate. Then Max Verstappen passed me, which I honestly found a bit strange. And then I suddenly got a time penalty – it’s as simple as that. The pace was good and I did everything I had to do. Unfortunately, I didn’t get the result I deserve.”
Piastri Declines to Lodge a Protest
“I don’t think it makes sense to approach the stewards now,” he explained during a press conference. “To be very honest, I don’t think it will yield anything. At this moment, I just don’t care.” Piastri was asked if he could quickly shake off this disappointing result. “No idea,” he responded. “Of course, it still hurts now, but that’s also because I truly feel I deserved better – I drove a very strong race.”
“I draw a lot of confidence from today,” he concluded positively. “The team did a fantastic job, the car was obviously great. And if I may pat myself on the back, I think I did an excellent job today. It’s just extra painful when you don’t win. What I did was simply within the rules.”
