McLaren CEO Zak Brown was forced to retract his criticism of Nico Hulkenberg after initially blasting the German for triggering the collision that wiped out both Lando Norris and Oscar Piastri in the United States Grand Prix Sprint.
The McLaren pair were eliminated on the opening lap at the Circuit of the Americas when Piastri was hit by Hulkenberg’s Kick Sauber and spun into his teammate. Speaking to Sky Sports F1 during the Sprint, Brown reacted angrily: “That was terrible. Neither of our drivers is to blame there.
"That’s some amateur-hour driving by some drivers up there at the front. I want to see the replay again but clearly Nico Hulkenberg drove into Oscar and he had no business being where he was, he went into his left-rear tyre," the American added.
A few hours later, after reviewing the footage, Brown admitted he had spoken too soon: “I’ve reviewed it, I think I’ve changed my view. I can’t really put that on Nico. In the heat of the moment, obviously pretty bothered by what I saw there, a lot of incidents in Turn One. But I don’t think that’s on Nico.”
It remains unclear whether Brown now considers the Lap 1 clash to have been a racing incident or whether Piastri could have played a role in the contact.
McLaren team principal Andrea Stella was more restrained but equally frustrated after the race. He told Sky Sports F1: “It’s surprising that some drivers with a lot of experience don’t act with more prudence, go to the first corner, make sure you don’t damage competitors, then carry on.”
After qualifying later that evening, Stella said both Norris and Piastri were content to let the matter rest until after the weekend but reiterated his belief that “more prudence” from those behind “would have been helpful.”
McLaren will start Sunday’s United States Grand Prix with Norris alongside pole-sitter Max Verstappen, while Piastri lines up P6 as the title fight resumes in Austin.
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