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McLaren F1 team bosses Zak Brown and Stella blamed rival drivers for the collision between Piastri and Lando Norris at the beginning of the United States Grand Prix sprint event.

Piastri, leading his teammate in the standings by 22 points, crashed into his team-mate after hitting the Hulkenberg.

The collision took both team drivers out of the race, along with Aston Martin's Fernando Alonso, who was on the inside of Hulkenberg.

Team Executives Express Disappointment Over Crash

Brown, McLaren Racing's chief executive officer, stated to Sky Sports that some of the racing at the start was "amateur hour", remarking: "Clearly Hulkenberg hit Oscar and he had no business being where he was."

The team team principal Stella commented: "Our feeling is that we are displeased that we were denied the opportunity to race."

"It's surprising that some drivers with a lot of expertise don't act with appropriate caution. Go to the first corner, ensure you avoid harming competitors and continue."

The team suggested that the team principal was pointing to both Hulkenberg and the Aston Martin driver.

Differing Perspectives on the Incident

Nevertheless, 1996 world champion Damon Hill, providing analysis for a sports broadcast, said he believed the Australian had not shown enough awareness of the dangers of the opening turn of an Formula 1 event when he chose to move inside to try to overtake his teammate.

Piastri had a better start than Norris and at first competed on the outside on the uphill entry to the turn.

However he then cut back in an effort to get a advantage on Norris on the way out, only to hit the Sauber driver.

Driver Reactions After the Incident

The McLaren driver said: "Less than perfect but I haven't seen what occurred, I tried to cut back on Lando and we were both quite distant from the corner apex and then were struck and it propelled me into Lando. A shame."

Norris commented: "I just got hit, right? I was not at fault. Behind us events unfolded and I just got unlucky and got hit because of it. I am unsure. I need to look a bit more carefully. It's more people further back just being a bit reckless and we are the result of that."

The Aston Martin driver said: "At one point I believed I was in the right place on the inside, but some cars came very fast from the outer side switching back and then I was there in the center."

The Sauber driver, who had earned a best qualifying fourth, said: "Major disappointment. All the good work from yesterday in the bin. Just chaotic."

"Oscar steered inward pretty aggressively trying to get the inside line and exit of Turn One but I cannot vanish."

"I had Alonso attack on the inner side and I was unable to see him any more. I aimed to leave space for him and then Oscar turned in and the collision was inevitable."

Post-Crash and McLaren's Reaction

McLaren will analyze the incident with their racers but only after the race weekend. Both cars needed extensive work before grand prix qualifying at 10 PM BST on Saturday.

The team principal said: "In general displeased but we accept it, we are now focusing on repairing the vehicles, there is a lot to do and then we will resume the weekend from there."

"Our team holds a strong position from our performance point of view so I trust we have the possibility to compete, compete fairly and utilize our performance."

"Championship points are the key thing, I prefer not to talk about mal-intent, just prudence. A little more prudence would be beneficial for everyone."

Championship Implications

The race was won by Red Bull's Verstappen, who closed in on both McLaren drivers in the championship - he is now fifty-five points behind Piastri and 33 adrift of Norris.

Stella said: "The implication is what the maths says - we missed out on eight championship points with both drivers, but we concentrate on ourselves. We have a highly capable car and two strong drivers. We anticipate just some normal racing."

The Red Bull driver said he was taking the championship race by race.

US GP

17-19 October, with main event from 8 PM BST on Sunday

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