McLaren’s Andrea Stella reacts to close call between Lando Norris and Oscar Piastri in Austria. McLaren team principal Andrea Stella reflects on the near-collision between Norris and Piastri in Austria.

A near repeat of Canada
The 2025 Austrian GP took F1 back a decade when two drivers from the same team were often locked wheel-to-wheel battling for victory while the rest of the field was far behind. From the Mercedes duo of Lewis Hamilton and Nico Rosberg, we have now moved to the McLaren pairing of Lando Norris and Oscar Piastri. There was already contact between the two in Canada, where Norris was taken out (and was still responsible for the collision), while in Austria, Oscar Piastri narrowly avoided a crash at Turn 4 by mere centimeters.

The Australian driver tried to make a move on the inside, but he was too far back and Norris rightly took the racing line. Oscar Piastri locked up his front right tire and managed to brake just in time to avoid a collision that could have been disastrous for the McLaren team dominating the weekend.

The McLaren pit wall immediately warned Oscar Piastri via radio to avoid further risky moves; the radio exchange was even broadcast live. In the usual post-race press conference, team principal Andrea Stella commented on the incident: “At Turn 4, Oscar Piastri overdid it, we told him that right away, and at the end of the race, he immediately apologized, saying it was his fault and that he knows exactly how to behave when engaged in a duel with his teammate. Why did we pit him a few laps after Norris during the first stop? We wanted to create a tire gap, but Norris was simply very good on the hard tires, and Oscar Piastri couldn’t take advantage of the DRS train, which is very powerful on this track. I’m very happy with how our drivers are behaving; they are both excellent prospects for the future, and now the goal is to secure a one-two again at Silverstone—I see no reason why we shouldn’t repeat it.” – the McLaren team boss concluded at the end of the Austrian Grand Prix.