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- Oscar Piastri took the lead of the Hungarian Grand Prix
- He shocked Lando Norris and Max Verstappen on lap one
- Piastri is aiming to win his first Grand Prix
Oscar Piastri sprung the mother of all shocks to gazump Lando Norris and Max Verstappen to take the lead of the Hungarian Grand Prix.
But it was an incredible – yet prolonged – act of generosity from the British star that resulted in Piastri taking his maiden Grand Prix victory in the most almighty of team squabbles in Budapest.
In a stunning move that once again proved the Australian’s credentials as a world champion of the future, the 23-year-old held his nerve as he went wheel-to-wheel in a three-way race to the first corner at lights out.
Occupying the inside line thanks to his P2 qualifying position in Saturday’s shootout, Piastri edged his nose in front of McLaren teammate Norris, forcing the Briton to go wide, which in turn pushed Verstappen off the track.
Verstappen returned to the tarmac in second position and as the Melbournian stretched his legs out in front, Norris and the Dutchman spent the following laps squabbling over the incident – with the Red Bull ace forced to hand it back.
As the race developed, Norris closed the gap on Piastri while Verstappen and Lewis Hamilton threatened behind. In an effort to prevent the Red Bull and Mercedes stars from taking the top two spots, McLaren called the Briton into the pits first for a second tyre change.
Oscar Piastri stunned Lando Norris and Max Verstappen at the Hungarian Grand Prix
The Australian was aiming to win his maiden Grand Prix on Sunday afternoon
But it inadvertently meant that Norris was in front of Piastri after the Aussie went in for his change, meaning McLaren had a decision to make.
McLaren ordered Norris to return the position to his teammate, but the Briton refused to comply with the orders as the calls from the garage grew increasingly frustrated.
As social media was awash with complaints from fans of Piastri being ‘screwed’ by Norris and the team, the Briton exhibited a surprise change of heart with three laps remaining.
He pulled aside on the home straight, allowing Piastri to pass and he went on to secure the win.
‘Don’t say anything,’ an upset Norris said on the team radio after the move.
Piastri has enjoyed a strong second season with the Papaya, albeit failing to come away with a maiden Grand Prix victory his drives have been worthy of.
Norris, the pole sitter for Sunday’s proceedings, expressed full confidence that he could convert his front row start into a win before lights out.
‘I am expecting to win, and if I don’t it hasn’t been a good day,’ he said. ‘The car is doing well, I am driving well, so it is obvious what the aim is.’
