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McLaren F1 team leaders Zak Brown and Stella blamed opposing racers for the collision between Oscar Piastri and Norris at the beginning of the United States Grand Prix sprint race.

Piastri, leading Norris in the standings by twenty-two points, bounced into his fellow McLaren driver after making contact with the Nico Hulkenberg.

The crash took both McLaren drivers from the event, along with Aston Martin's Alonso, who was on the inside of Hulkenberg.

Team Executives Express Disappointment Over Incident

Brown, McLaren Racing's chief executive officer, stated to broadcasters that some of the driving at the start was "amateur hour", stating: "Clearly Nico hit Piastri and he had no reason being where he was."

The team team principal Andrea Stella added: "Our feeling is that we are disappointed that we were denied the chance to compete."

"It is unexpected that some racers with a lot of expertise fail to act with necessary care. Go to the first corner, make sure you avoid harming other drivers and carry on."

The team clarified that the team principal was mentioning both the Sauber driver and the Aston Martin driver.

Contrasting Views on the Crash

Nevertheless, former champion Hill, commentating for a sports broadcast, said he thought the Australian had not demonstrated enough awareness of the risks of the first corner of an F1 race when he chose to cut back to try to overtake Norris.

Piastri had a better start than Norris and initially competed on the outer side on the ascending entry to the turn.

However he then moved inside in an effort to get a advantage on his teammate on the exit, only to collide with the Sauber driver.

Driver Reactions After the Collision

The McLaren driver said: "Not ideal but I did not see what occurred, I tried to cut back on Norris and we were both very far from the corner apex and then got a hit and it propelled me into Lando. A shame."

Norris said: "I just was struck, right? I did nothing wrong. Behind us events unfolded and I just was unfortunate and was struck because of it. I don't know. I need to review a bit more carefully. It's more drivers further back just being a bit reckless and we are the consequence of that."

Alonso said: "At one point I thought I was in the right place on the inside, but some vehicles came very fast from the outside switching back and then I was there in the middle."

The Sauber driver, who had qualified a season-best fourth place, said: "Major disappointment. All the good work from yesterday in the bin. Just messy."

"Piastri steered inward pretty forcefully trying to get the undercut and way out of Turn One but I can't just disappear."

"I had Alonso attack on the inside and I was unable to see him any more. I aimed to provide room for him and then Oscar turned in and the contact was inevitable."

Aftermath and Team Response

The team will analyze the crash with their racers but not until the event weekend. Both cars needed extensive work before qualifying session at 22:00 BST on the weekend.

Stella said: "Overall displeased but we take it on the chin, we are now focusing on fixing 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 performance point of view so I hope we have the possibility to race, compete fairly and utilize our capabilities."

"Championship points are the key thing, I don't want to talk about mal-intent, just caution. A bit more prudence would be beneficial for everyone."

Championship Implications

The race was won by the Verstappen, who closed in on both team racers in the standings - he is now fifty-five points behind Piastri and 33 adrift of Norris.

The team boss said: "The implication is what the numbers says - we missed out on eight points with both racers, but we concentrate on ourselves. We have a very competitive vehicle and two strong drivers. We anticipate just some standard competition."

The Red Bull driver said he was taking the title race race by race.

US GP

October 17-19, with race from 20:00 BST on the final day

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