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McLaren Formula 1 leaders Brown and Stella blamed opposing racers for the collision between Piastri and Lando Norris at the beginning of the United States Grand Prix sprint event.

Piastri, leading Norris in the championship by twenty-two points, bounced into his team-mate after making contact with the Nico Hulkenberg.

The incident took both McLaren drivers out of the race, along with Aston Martin's Alonso, who was on the inside of the Sauber driver.

Team Executives Express Disappointment Over Crash

Zak Brown, the team's chief executive officer, told broadcasters that some of the racing at the front was "amateur hour", remarking: "Obviously Hulkenberg hit Oscar and he had no reason being where he was."

The team boss Andrea Stella added: "The reaction is that we are displeased that we didn't have the opportunity to race."

"It is unexpected that some drivers with a lot of experience don't act with necessary care. Enter the initial turn, make sure you avoid harming competitors and continue."

The team clarified that Stella was pointing to both Hulkenberg and the Aston Martin driver.

Contrasting Views on the Incident

Nevertheless, former champion Hill, commentating for BBC Radio 5 Sports Extra, said he believed the Australian had not shown enough awareness of the risks of the first corner of an F1 race when he decided to cut back to try to overtake his teammate.

The Australian had a better start than Norris and initially competed on the outer side on the ascending approach to the corner.

But he then cut back in an effort to get a run 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 happened, I tried to move inside on Lando and we were both quite distant from the apex and then got a hit and it sent me into Norris. A shame."

His teammate said: "I just got hit, right? I did nothing wrong. Further back events unfolded and I just got unlucky and got hit because of it. I am unsure. I need to review a bit more carefully. It's more people behind just being a bit careless and we are the consequence of that."

The Aston Martin driver said: "At one point I believed I was in the right place on the inner side, but some vehicles came very quickly from the outer side changing direction and then I was there in the center."

The Sauber driver, who had earned a season-best fourth place, said: "Big frustrations. All the strong performance from yesterday in the bin. Just chaotic."

"Piastri turned in pretty aggressively trying to get the inside line and exit of Turn One but I can't just disappear."

"I had Alonso attack on the inner side and I was unable to see him any more. I wanted to provide room for him and then Oscar turned in and the collision was unavoidable."

Aftermath and Team Response

McLaren will review the incident with their racers but not until the event weekend. Both vehicles needed extensive work before qualifying session at 22:00 BST on the weekend.

The team principal said: "Overall displeased but we take it on the chin, we are now focusing on repairing the vehicles, there is a lot to do and then we will restart the weekend from there."

"Our team holds a strong position from our competitiveness point of view so I hope we have the possibility to race, compete fairly and capitalise on 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 all involved."

Championship Implications

The race was won by Red Bull's Max Verstappen, who gained ground on both team racers in the championship - he is now 55 points behind the Australian and 33 behind of the Briton.

The team boss said: "The consequence 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 vehicle and two strong drivers. We look forward to just some normal racing."

Verstappen said he was approaching the championship race by race.

US GP

October 17-19, with main event from 8 PM BST on the final day

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