Piastri slammed after 'absolutely ridiculous error' in Baku GP
F1 analyst Peter Windsor commented on McLaren’s disappointing weekend in Baku, marked by Oscar Piastri’s retirement and Lando Norris finishing only seventh.
'Where was the fire, where was the aggression?'- Peter Windsor
Starting with his analysis of McLaren and Lando Norris on his YouTube channel, Windsor commented: "To have a new set of mediums was a big advantage against drivers like, Russell, Antonelli, Sainz, Lawson, Tsunoda, Leclerc and of course, Max Verstappen. But despite that, he got beaten by Max to the tune of over 30 seconds. Lando beat both Ferraris, but he was slow at the restart."
Windsor highlighted a lack of aggression in Norris, speculating on how Max Verstappen would have acted in the same situation.
"He got past the Ferraris, but that's where it ended. Can you imagine Verstappen in that situation, sitting there for the rest of the race, and watching it just disappear like that, in a very, very good race car, with the benefit of a new set of medium tyres? That's what happened with Norris. Where was the fire, where was the aggression?"
"I cannot imagine Max in that car, in that McLaren today, with the benefit of those tyres, with the benefit of the downforce that that car has, not doing anything with it, which is basically what Lando did. Here I am sort of kind of criticizing Lando."
Windsor also slammed Oscar Piastri’s weekend, pointing out that the Australian not only crashed into the wall twice between qualifying and the race, but also made a false start—what he labelled as a serious mistake.
"Two virtually identical accidents, one on Saturday, one on Sunday. His race began right behind Lando on the grid. He was P9 by jumping the start. In these days where you do nothing but watch the lights.
It was an extraordinary mistake. And I guess because of that, flustered at the back of the field now, Oscar just went for it. An absolutely ridiculous error, particularly after doing virtually the same thing the day before."
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Stella draws conclusions after bad weekend for McLaren
Speaking after the race, McLaren team principal Andrea Stella commented on Lando Norris’s performance, noting that the Briton had a great opportunity to significantly close the gap to his teammate following his retirement, but ultimately managed to claw back only six points in the championship fight.
Oscar Piastri, on the other hand, addressed his mistake at the start, admitting that he underestimated the level of grip and taking full responsibility for a weekend he hopes to forget quickly.
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