Piastri wins Hungarian Grand Prix in McLaren team order debacle
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Oscar Piastri won a fiery Hungarian Grand Prix as the Australian passed Lando Norris to take his first Grand Prix victory. Max Verstappen, who finished the race in fifth, fumed over team radio throughout the race before making contact with third-place finisher Lewis Hamilton in the latter stages.
How the Hungarian Grand Prix unfolded:
A hot Sunday in Hungary was accompanied by a fiery race at the Hungaroring. There was worry at the McLaren camp pre-race, as polesitter Lando Norris reported throttle issues. Luckily for the Brit, the problems were fixed before the race. Oscar Piastri got away well, overtaking Lando Norris into the first corner. Max Verstappen joined the McLarens, making it three wide. The Dutchman ran wide at the first corner but pushed Norris to third place. Immediately after, Norris complained on the radio about Verstappen's move, and the Red Bull driver gave the place back as the stewards began to investigate it. Verstappen was, of course, unhappy with the decision, and settled into third behind the McLarens.
Further down the field, George Russell made a few solid overtakes from 16th on the grid. As did Sergio Perez, who sat just behind 10th-placed George Russell in the early stages. Oscar Piastri extended his gap to Lando Norris to over three seconds. Polesitter Norris was told on lap 14 that his race was 'with Verstappen' instead of his teammate Piastri. Hamilton was the first front-runner to pit. The seven-time champion moved onto the hard tyres on lap 17. Polesitter Lando Norris was next in. He moved onto the hards, as did race leader Oscar Piastri who pit on lap 19. A three-second pit stop for Max Verstappen on lap 22 put the Dutchman in fourth place. Oscar Piastri continued to dictate the pace out front.
On lap 35, Max Verstappen attempted to overtake third-placed Lewis Hamilton. Despite the Brit's lock-up, Verstappen was unable to get by as he ran off the track at turn two. Verstappen stayed on Hamilton's tail for several laps until Hamilton pitted on lap 41. So did Charles Leclerc, who was gaining on the pair as they squabbled. At the back of the pack, Pierre Gasly retired his Alpine after starting the race from the pitlane in what was a miserable race weekend for the Frenchman. The gap out front was minimised slightly as Oscar Piastri had a scary moment off-track. This didn't make any odds, however, as Norris was serviced in the pits first before his teammate Lando Norris. McLaren stressed to Norris that they wanted to change the positions once again, putting Piastri back in front. Norris ignored his race engineer Will Joseph, who continued to ask him to let Piastri by. Norris, however, continued to extend the gap out front. 'Tell Oscar to catch me,' Norris said.
On lap 63, Max Verstappen made contact with Lewis Hamilton as he locked up into the first corner. Verstappen flew at the first corner and lost the position to Charles Leclerc. It could've been much worse for the Dutchman, who hit the ground hard and managed to keep the car running. Despite serious encouragement from his team, Norris didn't let Piastri by until lap 68. The Brit stuck close to his teammate until the chequered flag, but Piastri headed a McLaren 1-2 home to take his first Grand Prix victory.