Lando Norris expresses frustration over Oscar Piastri's first-lap overtake at Italian GP

Lando Norris expresses frustration over Oscar Piastri's first-lap overtake at Italian GP

Lando Norris voiced his displeasure with McLaren teammate Oscar Piastri after a tense opening-lap overtake during the Italian Grand Prix, calling it "way too close for comfort."

McLaren started in a strong position, with Norris on pole and Piastri close behind, holding their spots at the first corner. However, Piastri caught Norris off guard by attempting an overtake on the outside at Turn 4, securing the inside line at the chicane's second part.

This maneuver forced Norris off his line, allowing Ferrari's Charles Leclerc to slip into second place. Leclerc went on to win the race with a one-stop strategy, while the McLaren duo, who opted for two stops, finished behind.

Reflecting on the situation, Norris told Sky Sports F1, "I feel he got way too close for comfort. We could both have easily been out in that first corner if I had braked just one meter later. If I could rewind, I would do stuff slightly differently. But it is what it is."

Norris pointed out that Leclerc's early pass likely contributed to his victory, saying, "Charles won by two seconds in the end, and the fact he got ahead probably gained him two seconds over the course of the race. We couldn't achieve a one-stop as our degradation was too high on the front tyres. That is a weakness for us at the minute."

Later, in the top three drivers' press conference, Norris elaborated on his cautious approach, noting that he was trying to avoid any contact with Piastri. "Oscar obviously braked on the limit and gave me space; there was just about enough. I did my best to avoid anything else happening at the time. At the same time, if I brake two meters later, you don't know and you can't predict, but it could easily have been a crash. It's a tough one. The easiest thing is just to brake way later and force him off, and kind of treat it like no one else."

Norris admitted he may have been overly cautious, considering the large gap behind them, adding, "I obviously took it easy. I saw we had a massive gap behind, so maybe I was just a bit too much on the cautious side and paid the price."

Piastri, who is currently 106 points behind Max Verstappen in the drivers' standings, maintained that his move was clean. "I broke later and got around the outside," Piastri explained. "There wasn't really much more to it than that. We both got through it unscathed. I knew once I hit the brakes I kind of got ahead a bit and knew I was entitled to stay on the outside. For 38 laps, it put me in a race-winning position. So it was just a good first lap."

Despite the incident, Norris managed to reduce Verstappen's lead in the Drivers' Championship to 62 points. However, he acknowledged that he could have gained 10 more points had he won the race, a possibility that slipped away after Piastri's overtake.

With Verstappen and Red Bull's struggles becoming more apparent, Norris' chances of catching the Dutchman are growing as the season progresses, with eight rounds remaining.

Norris also recalled a similar situation in Hungary before the summer break, where team orders led to a loss to Piastri. He suggested that, theoretically, he could be 17 points closer to Verstappen if McLaren had prioritized his championship hopes.

When asked whether he should receive full support from the team, Norris responded, "I would love it, but it's not up to me. It's tough because, as any driver, you don't want things to just be played that way. It's a tough one."

While expressing his confidence in the team's performance, Norris emphasized the importance of securing victories. "I won't say we're running out of time, but time is going away slowly. I still believe we can do it. The pace is obviously great. I still believe we probably had close to, if not the best car again today."

Norris concluded by stating that the decision ultimately lies with the team. "It's not for me to decide. It's for the team. I think we're still working together well and helping each other. That's shown plenty of times this year that we're working together very well as a team and we're performing as the best team out on the grid, and we're very happy with that."

He added, "But when you're fighting for a championship, you want every little thing, and I'm doing everything I can. The best way simply is just to win the race, and I didn't do that today because of some silly things, so this is for the team, not for me."