McLaren team principal Andrea Stella has stood by the tactical choices his outfit made during the Hungarian Grand Prix, despite Oscar Piastri’s initial criticism after he was overtaken by teammate Lando Norris. Piastri launched the race from third on the grid, quickly moving past Ferrari’s Charles Leclerc and pole‑sitter Lando Norris in the opening corners to seize the lead by the end of lap one.
The Australian quickly became McLaren’s on‑track priority, with the team aiming to keep him ahead of the competition. However, a second wave of pit stops saw Ferrari’s Lewis Hamilton close the gap, forcing Stella and his engineers to react. When Hamilton entered the pits, McLaren elected to bring Piastri in to preserve his track position relative to the Mercedes driver. The move, intended to protect the lead, back‑fired when Norris, on fresher tyres and benefiting from a higher pace, began to close in.
The situation was compounded by an unfortunate incident in which Piastri made contact with the Williams of backmarker Carlos Sainz, who was later penalised for the collision. Immediately after the contact, Piastri vented his frustration over the team radio, and later, when Norris emerged ahead of him following his own stop, the Australian driver delivered another sharp remark aimed at the pit wall. Despite the tension, Stella explained that the team’s decisions were driven by the need to counter Hamilton’s undercut threat rather than personal preference for one driver over the other.
"If you look at the race telemetry, you’ll see that when Hamilton pitted he was in a position to undercut both McLarens, so we had to respond," Stella said. "Our goal was to keep a McLaren ahead of Hamilton, not to favour Oscar or Lando arbitrarily." Stella continued, noting that the team initially chose to stop Oscar because he was leading at that moment, while Lando’s stop required a different strategy. He emphasized that the choice was not about deviating for the sake of one driver but about preventing Ferrari from seizing the race lead. "It wasn’t a matter of picking Oscar over Lando; it was about ensuring Hamilton could not take control of the race," Stella added.
"Lando on used tyres was still competitive, and that ultimately allowed him to claim victory, but it was a result of pace, not a pre‑planned team order." Piastri’s race ended prematurely when a gearbox failure forced him to retire while he was running second. In the aftermath, the Australian driver acknowledged that the timing of McLaren’s stops had been appropriate and admitted that his request to delay Norris’s pit stop after the Sainz collision was unrealistic.
"I was hit by Carlos, and in the heat of the moment I hoped the team might hold Lando back to give me a chance to stay ahead, but that wasn’t reasonable," Piastri told Sky Sports F1. "I was just very upset about the incident. The pit timing was fine; we needed to beat Lewis, and that’s what we were aiming for." Before the gearbox failure, Norris had been pressuring the pit wall, repeatedly telling engineers that he felt faster than his teammate and urging them to let him pit first. Stella defended the decision to stick with the original plan, explaining that the pit wall constantly evaluates multiple variables to maximise the chance of a win while also securing the best possible points haul for the team.
"At the pit wall we constantly weigh options from different angles – a race win, points for the championship, and consistency in our racing philosophy," Stella said. "Oscar earned the lead fairly in the opening corners, so he deserved the opportunity to fight for the win. In other circuits Lando might have overtaken Oscar, but here a significant pace advantage was needed, which Oscar didn’t have after the incident." Stella praised both drivers for embracing the team’s approach, noting that the race was executed well from a strategic standpoint despite the marginal nature of the decisions involved.
"It was a well‑executed race from a principles perspective, and I thank Oscar and Lando for supporting our strategy," he concluded. Even after retracting his criticism of McLaren, Piastri remained irked by Sainz’s role in the collision.
In a post‑race interview, he recounted the blue‑flag situation, insisting that he was directly behind the Williams car when the contact occurred. "I saw the blue‑flag signals, but they were on all the marshal boards, and I was right behind him in that sector," Piastri said.
"Being hit by a lapped car is something you never expect, and it ruined my race. Whether he saw me or not is irrelevant – the lack of awareness is unacceptable." Sainz defended his actions, claiming that ambiguous blue‑flag signals and a battle with Aston Martin’s Fernando Alonso for position contributed to the mishap.
He also suggested that Piastri could have been more cautious given the high stakes of a race‑winning fight. Piastri dismissed Sainz’s comments, pointing out the Spanish driver’s own history of on‑track frustration.
"He’s often critical of others and has faced criticism himself for being difficult on track. Maybe he should look in the mirror," Piastri retorted.
The Formula 1 calendar will resume after the summer break with the Dutch Grand Prix at Zandvoort, scheduled for 21‑23 August, with all sessions broadcast live on Sky Sports F1. Viewers can stream the coverage via NOW without a contract, cancel anytime.