Sao Paulo GP: McLaren's Oscar Piastri reflects on 10-second penalty
What's the story
Oscar Piastri, the McLaren driver, had a challenging day at the 2025 Sao Paulo Grand Prix. He managed to finish fifth after incurring a 10-second time penalty for an early collision with Mercedes's Kimi Antonelli. The incident happened during the restart of an early Safety Car phase when Piastri, who had started fourth on the grid, tried to overtake Antonelli for second place at Turn 1. Here's more.
Race incident
Here's what happened during the race
Piastri's attempt to overtake Antonelli resulted in a lock-up, causing his McLaren to hit the Mercedes. This collision pushed Antonelli into Scuderia Ferrari's Charles Leclerc, taking him out of the race. While both Piastri and Antonelli continued racing, the former was handed a 10-second time penalty for the incident. The Australian served this penalty during his pit stop on Lap 39 of 71.
Race analysis
Piastri reflects on tough race
After serving his penalty, Piastri fought his way back up the grid but couldn't catch Mercedes's George Russell in a battle for fourth. "I got a really good Safety Car restart and went to the inside," he said as per the F1 website. "I put myself up the inside pretty comfortably and there was obviously a bit of a lock-up, but I couldn't go any further left than I already was - I can't really just disappear. Then after that, not sure we made the right calls either, so a tough afternoon."
Title setback
Piastri crashed out of Brazilian GP sprint
Piastri's title hopes suffered a major blow when he crashed out of the Brazilian Grand Prix Sprint on Saturday. The incident occurred on lap eight when Piastri, who was third and chasing Antonelli, lost control of his McLaren at Turn 3. He hit the barriers nose-first after hitting a wet kerb. The heavy impact forced him to retire from the race, while Colapinto also retired after making an identical error at the same corner.
Norris
Lando Norris wins Sao Paulo GP
Lando Norris clinched the 2025 Sao Paulo Grand Prix in a thrilling showdown, taking a major step toward his first Formula 1 title. The McLaren driver started from pole position and held off fierce competition to secure his second consecutive win of the season. Red Bull's Max Verstappen, who started from the pit lane, made a stunning comeback but was denied second place by Antonelli in a thrilling finale.
Information
Piastri is 24 points behind McLaren teammate Norris
Norris leads the 2025 Driver Standings with 390 points from 21 races. He is followed by Piastri, who has 366 points. Red Bull Racing's Verstappen owns 341 points and is behind the McLaren duo.