Oscar Piastri cruelly out of Belgian Grand Prix as F1 rookie fumes at rival

30 July 2023 , 13:15

1077     0

Oscar Piastri picked up terminal damage at the start of the race at Spa (Image: Sky Sports)

Oscar Piastri slammed podium rival Carlos Sainz after picking up car damage which ruined his Belgian Grand Prix chances.

The Aussie came into the Spa-Francorchamps race full of confidence. He was fifth on the grid and, in the Sprint a day earlier, he had gone wheel-to-wheel with Max Verstappen and finished second behind only the Red Bull racer.

With McLaren performing strongly and Piastri showing excellent skill in his rookie Formula 1 season, few would have bet against him challenging for the podium. But those who didn't back him saved their money, as his race was over within seconds.

Heading into the first corner, Piastri had the inside line as he tried to slip past Sainz. But the Spaniard cut across on the track and they collided, causing damage to the front wing of the McLaren.

But, clearly, the effects were much more severe than that. Shortly after, Piastri's car was pulled up on the side of the track and out of the race.

Inside the driver call which upset Red Bull and changed the course of F1 history

After looking at the collision, the race director decided that no further investigation was necessary. But Piastri was clearly unhappy with the way Sainz had raced.

Even speaking in his usual calm tone, the anger in his voice was clear. "I don't know what he was doing. I was there and he just turned in like I didn't exist," said the Aussie over the radio as he pulled over.

Piastri had to pull over and was out of the race on the first lap (Sky Sports)

The Spaniard, though, didn't escape without consequence either. While not immediately terminal, there was enough damage to that Ferrari for Sainz to start losing places. And he eventually was forced into becoming the second retiree of the Grand Prix.

His team told him over the radio that he had lost around five per cent of aerodynamic performance as a result of the collision. Sainz was soon after in the pit lane, but to put on fresh tyres rather than to retire the car.

Not that it would have been much comfort to McLaren. In fact, they had even more problems of their own with Lando Norris apparently suffering car problems of his own and not showing the pace of the MCL60 that has been apparent in recent races.

Daniel Moxon