Oscar Piastri Voices Concern Over Charles Leclerc's Spa Sanction

Oscar Piastri picked up damage in a lap eight clash with Charles Leclerc at the Formula 1 Belgian Grand Prix on 30 July 2023.

What happened?

The Australian driver was unsure whether Leclerc deserved a penalty after the pair clashed at the Belgian Grand Prix, but believes there is a minimum course of action that the stewards should have taken. Using overtake mode and deploying plenty of battery power, Piastri pulled alongside Leclerc on the run to Les Combes on lap eight of Sunday's Formula 1 race. Attempting a move that was seen to be successful through a number of other drivers across the 44-lap duration, the Australian was denied racing room as Leclerc pulled across, squeezing Piastri onto the kerb, which resulted in contact between the two drivers and damage to the McLaren.

Why it matters for Oscar Piastri

With the stewards having already handed Lewis Hamilton a harsh penalty for lap one contact with George Russell at the same corner, there was an expectation that a similar five-second sanction would be dished out this time around. However, the stewards deemed that no further action was required, detailing: "Although Car 81 had achieved some overlap with Car 16, its front axle was not ahead of the front axle of Car 16. From the stewards' perspective, there was no realistic possibility of Car 81 completing the overtake from that position." Piastri said: “From where I was sat, I was on the white line and got squeezed. I think we were both very lucky not to have a bigger crash, because we touched wheels at the start of the braking zone, basically.

What comes next?

A black and white flag is the 'last warning' for a driver, indicating that a further infraction will result in a penalty. Most commonly, this is handed out due to track limits violations. Piastri had a new nose fitted during his stop, repairing the damage with his pace subsequently returning. After finishing in fifth place, he added: “I mean, the first stint, I think the damage was a big player, because I lost a decent bit of downforce, but it impacted the balance of the car a fair bit. So I was struggling a lot from then on until we could change the front wing and compensate a little bit.

The aftermath

Piastri's car was still damaged, so he thinks that was definitely a factor. But he agrees that they looked very competitive at the start of the stints and maybe not quite as good at the end. The Australian driver's comments come after a dramatic Belgian Grand Prix, which saw several high-profile incidents and penalties.