‘Bittersweet’: Piastri gets best F1 result but just misses podium

Oscar Piastri was left with a “bittersweet” feeling after the emerging Australian star was denied a maiden Formula 1 podium finish due to a safety car deployment in the British Grand Prix.

Piastri finished fourth in front of a 160,000-strong crowd at Silverstone, as Max Verstappen and Red Bull stayed unbeaten in 2023, equalling McLaren’s 1988 record run of 11 victories in a row.

McLaren’s Lando Norris, Piastri’s teammate, finished second, with his fellow Briton and seven-time world champion Lewis Hamilton third for Mercedes after starting seventh.

Red Bull’s Max Verstappen on the podium.Credit: Reuters

“Eleven in a row. That’s pretty crazy,” said Verstappen over the team radio after his sixth win in a row and eighth in 10 races this season.

The double world champion also took the fastest lap to surge 99 points clear of closest rival and teammate Sergio Perez, who finished sixth after starting 15th.

Piastri, however, felt as if he had let one slip, having been third before a delay when Kevin Magnussen’s Haas suffered an engine failure. Hamilton took advantage, taking a pit stop and returning in third place behind Verstappen and Norris.

Close: Oscar Piastri was denied a maiden podium finish, having qualified third fastest at the British Grand Prix.Credit: AP

“It’s a bittersweet result. That’s the best way to describe how I feel. The most pleasing aspect was that we achieved these results on merit,” Piastri said.

“I think it’s one thing to get these results by lucky incidents, but we were genuinely the second quickest team today, which was a very happy surprise.

“On my side, we were unlucky with the safety car timing with Lewis getting a free stop. But it’s nice in some ways to be disappointed with a fourth place, considering where we were at the start of the year.”

Norris said it was a “a bit of a shame” that Piastri was denied his first podium.

“He should be sitting here. If things went to plan and there wasn’t a safety car. So, it’s a bit of a shame. He deserved his first podium in Formula 1,” Norris said.

“I think it would have been amazing for us as Team McLaren and celebrating our 60th anniversary ... and he deserved it. He’s been on top form all weekend, he’s been pushing me an insane amount.

“All year he’s been good. It’s not like he’s just turned up here and been strong. He’s been good since day one in the car and makes my life tough sometimes. I don’t always like it, but it’s a good thing, and makes me a better driver, too.

Max Verstappen en route to winning the British Formula 1 Grand Prix at Silverstone.Credit: Getty Images

“He’ll have his chances. He’s driving very well and he’s doing a very good job.”

Britain’s George Russell was fifth for Mercedes and Fernando Alonso seventh for Aston Martin.

Alex Albon continued resurgent Williams’ strong recent showing with eighth, ahead of Ferrari’s Charles Leclerc and Carlos Sainz.

Verstappen started on pole position but did not have it all his own way with Norris, alongside on the front row, seizing the lead at the start.

The Briton stayed ahead until lap five when Verstappen passed with DRS (drag reduction) assistance at the end of the Wellington Straight.

The Red Bull did not disappear into the distance, however, with Norris still within a second of Verstappen five laps later and the McLaren drivers agreeing to hold position for the benefit of the team and to manage the tyres.

“I did what I could. I brought the fight to Max for as long as possible,” Norris said.

The safety car, deployed from lap 33 to 38 after Magnussen’s engine died and burst into flames, bunched up the pack with the top three getting a cheap pitstop before the final 14 laps of racing.

Haas’ Nico Hulkenberg and Perez made contact on lap eight in a battle for 13th, with the German then pitting for a new front wing.

Alpine’s Esteban Ocon was the first retirement, told by the Renault-owned team that it was all over due to a hydraulic leak when he returned to the pits on lap 10. Teammate Pierre Gasly also retired on a bleak afternoon for the Renault-owned outfit.

Organisers said 160,000 fans attended Sunday’s race with a British Grand Prix record of 480,000 over the course of the event.

They could also breathe a sigh of relief after a feared protest by ‘Just Stop Oil’ campaigners, who invaded the track last year, failed to materialise.

with AP, Reuters

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