Piastri wins Spanish GP to stretch his F1 lead, Verstappen demoted

TimesLIVE

2 days ago

Formula One leader Oscar Piastri won the Spanish Grand Prix from pole position in a McLaren one-two with Lando Norris on Sunday while Max Verstappen was demoted from fifth to 10th for a late collision with George Russell's Mercedes.
Piastri beat teammate and title rival Norris by 2.471 seconds for his fifth win in nine races this season, and McLaren's seventh, to stretch his championship lead to 10 points.
Ferrari's Charles Leclerc completed the podium after passing Verstappen's Red Bull six laps from the end of a race that saved the drama to the end.
'It's a nice way to bounce back from Monaco. A superb weekend,' said Piastri, who finished third last weekend in a race won from pole by Norris.
Verstappen, who made four stops in total and ended up fighting on the slower hard tyres against rivals with softs, collided with Leclerc and then twice with Russell after a safety car restart with six laps to go.
'I've seen those sort of manoeuvres before on simulator games and go-karting but never in F1,' said Russell, who has had clashes before with four-times world champion Verstappen.
'I don't really know what was going through his mind.'
Penalty points
Nico Rosberg, Mercedes 2016 world champion and now a pundit for Sky Sports television, said Verstappen should have been black-flagged for what looked to him like intentional retaliation for the earlier contact.
The 10-second penalty was added to Verstappen's time post-race, with the driver also given three penalty points to take his total tally to 11 for the 12 month period — one step from a one-race ban.
Verstappen and Leclerc also faced a post-race investigation for their clash.
'I tried to push him to the left, there was a bit of contact but fortunately no consequences,' said Leclerc.
Verstappen claimed the Monegasque had rammed into him and should have given back the place.
Russell finished fourth after eventually being let through by Verstappen, who was incensed to be told to do so but reluctantly obeyed.
Sauber's Nico Hulkenberg finished a surprising and morale-boosting fifth for the future Audi team after passing Ferrari's seven-times world champion Lewis Hamilton on the penultimate lap.
Hamilton was a disappointing sixth, Isack Hadjar seventh for Racing Bulls and Pierre Gasly eighth for Renault-owned Alpine.
Ferrari moved up to second from fourth in the constructors' standings, now 197 points behind McLaren.
Verstappen remained third in the drivers' championship but now 49 points behind Piastri in what is becoming a McLaren battle.
First points
Home hero Fernando Alonso scored his first points of the season with Aston Martin, who had only one car on the grid due to Lance Stroll's withdrawal through injury after Saturday's qualifying.
Piastri led away at the start with Verstappen seizing second from Norris while Hamilton and Leclerc moved up to fourth and fifth as Russell lost out.
Hamilton let Leclerc through on lap 10 of 66 after the two Ferraris had run nose to tail.
Norris took back second place from Verstappen on lap 13, the Dutch driver making no attempt to defend against the quicker McLaren and pitting in the next lap for fresh tyres.
Verstappen took the lead again on lap 23 after Piastri pitted, with Norris making his first stop on lap 21 and coming out behind the Red Bull, but that lasted only until Verstappen pitted for a second time on lap 30.
He came in for a third stop on lap 47 but Norris pitted the lap after to defend second place.
A safety car deployment on lap 55, after Italian rookie Kimi Antonelli beached his Mercedes in the gravel, bunched up the field and triggered a rash of stops.
The McLarens came in together for fresh tyres, double-stacking and resumed ahead of Verstappen, who questioned the switch to a set of hards but was told that was the only option available.
'That safety car just came at the wrong time,' he said. 'On the straight, I got driven into already and then into Turn One as well. Then they told me to give the position back.'