Piastri admits to nervousness during intense discussions between Norris and McLaren

Race winner Oscar Piastri has admitted he became “nervous” in the closing laps of the Hungarian Grand Prix during serious discussions over McLaren’s team order with Lando Norris.

Piastri’s road to victory began with a tremendous start from second on the grid, when he overtook Lando Norris on the inside at the first corner.

The Australian built up a comfortable lead over Norris but needed some help from McLaren in the closing stages. Norris pitted ahead of Piastri in the second round of stops to protect himself from the speedy Lewis Hamilton.

In doing so, Norris completed an undercut on Piastri after the Australian completed his final pit stop.

Norris initially made life difficult for McLaren by not allowing his teammate to pass him, before accepting team orders and handing the lead to Piastri with a few laps remaining.

“It’s very, very special,” Piastri said of his first win. “This is really the day I dreamed of when I was a kid, when I was on the top step of the Formula 1 podium.”

“Obviously it was a bit tricky at the end but I got into the right position at the start. Thanks to the team for an incredible effort, an incredible car.

“It’s a lot of fun racing for McLaren, so I can’t thank them enough for giving me the opportunity to be in F1.”

Piastri praises McLaren as a ‘beast’

Piastri’s maiden F1 win makes him the first Australian to win a race at motorsport’s pinnacle since RB’s Daniel Ricciardo won the 2021 Italian Grand Prix, McLaren’s latest one-two finish.

The 23-year-old has bounced back greatly from some tough rounds recently but has recalled his best form in Austria, Great Britain and now Hungary.

His victory makes him the 115th winner of an F1 race, while it is the 44th win by an Australian driver.

“It’s a beast[the car]at the moment, it’s fast in all conditions,” Piastri praised. “I think we had it completely under control today, and it’s an incredible feeling to be able to manage the race like that with both cars and secure the one-two.”

“I don’t know when the last double was, but I think it was a long time ago. I’m very happy for the whole team and it’s good to get my first win.”

The end of the race was not easy for Piastri or the Woking team. It took several laps and countless radio messages for Norris to allow Piastri to get through the start/finish straight.

Although it looked stressful from the outside, Piastri praised McLaren for how they handled the situation.

“The longer you leave it, of course, you get a little bit nervous,” Piastri admitted. “But no, the team executed it well and I think it was the right thing to do.”

“I got into the right position at the start and with a different strategy than we had, yes, my pace was probably not as fast as I would have liked in the last stint.

“But I was still in the right position to do it. So yeah, very well executed by the team.”