Piastri joins the winners list after a spicy Hungarian GP

Oscar Piastri has proudly joined the coveted list of Formula 1 race winners, hailing victorious for the very first time in a tense Hungarian Grand Prix that saw his fast-starting efforts nearly stolen by Lando Norris’ disobedience to team orders.

Fending off a tight squeeze from his pole-sitting teammate on the run to Turn 1, Piastri charged into the lead as the five lights went out.

The #81 placed himself at the height of McLaren’s priority list, coming out on top of the three-way battle between himself, Max Verstappen and Norris to create an interval of over 1.5 seconds as he completed the opening lap. 

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With his closest competitors held up with swapping positions, the distance grew by over a second, allowing Piastri to take command of the 70-lap race.

As the race looked to be settling, Norris was sent his first of many instructions from the McLaren pit wall, being told his race was with Verstappen as opposed to his teammate. 

The first round of pitstops hit the front-runners beyond Lap 15, with Norris the first McLaren into the pits.

The 23-year-old followed suit on Lap 18, rejoining 3.7 seconds behind Carlos Sainz before regaining the lead on Lap 22. 

Piastri’s McLaren momentarily came off its railing at Turn 11, one of two mistakes made by the Australian across the entire 70-lap duel. 

Driving across the run-off area cost Piastri two seconds of distance between himself and Norris, a loss that would become significant as second pitstops arrived.

Norris was allowed to undercut his teammate under the promise of returning the race lead when the time came, seeing the Miami Grand Prix race winner called into the pits one lap earlier than Piastri.

On Lap 47, the Melbourne-born racer exited the pitlane behind his teammate, however, a second mistake coming in the gravel trap at Turn 12 spoiled his fresh tyre dash. 

Despite Piastri being assured the lead would be handed back to him, the McLaren radio waves were plagued with angst as the laps ticked down.

Norris refused to invert the positions as earlier agreed upon, insisting that it was better for his championship to stay ahead. 

His words weren’t the only thing making his intentions known, with the #4 McLaren finding a gap of three seconds and instantly building upon it. 

Steadily jumping from four seconds to five seconds, to six seconds, Norris extended his lead whilst giving his team’s pleas the silent treatment.

Norris’ true colours showed when he frustratingly told his race engineer Will Joseph that Piastri had to catch him on merit to have his place back, a statement that was met with a harsh reminder of the importance of teamwork in the championship fight.

The back and forth ended with three laps to go, with a slowing Lando Norris reluctantly letting the Piastri by to secure his maiden Formula 1 victory, however, remaining within DRS range. 

Piastri becomes the 115th Grand Prix winner, joining the likes of Daniel Ricciardo, Mark Webber, Alan Jones and Sir Jack Brabham as the fifth Australian to achieve such a feat.

Oscar Piastri celebrates his maiden victory on arrival in Parc Ferme at the Hungarian GP. Image: Glenn Dunbar / LAT Images.

As for Ricciardo, the lead half of McLaren’s previous 1-2 result at the 2022 Italian Grand Prix, his race was anything but proud.

Poor strategy ruined the Honey Badger’s hopes and dreams of scoring points in Hungary, however, Yuki Tsunoda managed to add two points to the team’s total heading to Belgium.

Ricciardo’s woes began unfolding at the first turn, with the busy scene allowing Alex Albon to glide around the outside of the RB after a flying start in his Williams. 

That wasn’t Ricciardo’s only loss on the opening lap, however, with Kevin Magnussen also demoting the #3 before the first 14 corners had been completed.

His starting position was reinstated as Albon and Magnussen both pulled into the pits early on Lap 6, a strategy call Ricciardo was told to react to just one lap later.

It was a prolonged visit to the pitlane after the team performed a slightly slower stop to put the hard tyre on.

The added time resulted in Ricciardo instantly engaging in battle with Magnussen as he rejoined the race.

The Australian remained within Magnussen’s DRS range until their battle was interrupted by Lance Stroll on Lap 16. 

The Aston Martin driver’s 4.1-second stop led to him exiting the pitlane in the heat of their battle for P15, but it wasn’t long before he cleared the back-markers, making light work of Magnussen to send the Haas back into Ricciardo’s grasp.

Unable to pass the Haas, the RB pit wall pulled their driver in for a second early stop, leaving him in last place as he completed his out lap on the hard tyre.

His movement up the order was purely a result of his competitors’ second pitstops, with a late attack on Valtteri Bottas the only exciting moment of Ricciardo’s race to secure P12 as the chequered flag was waved in Budapest.

Daniel Ricciardo leads Yuki Tsunoda around Turn 2 at the start of the Hungarian Grand Prix. Image: Rudy Carezzevoli/Getty Images // Getty Images / Red Bull Content Pool.

The remaining 18 drivers experienced differing levels of intensity at the Hungaroring, with Max Verstappen’s race never having a dull moment. 

The Dutchman botched his start, being forced to hand second place back to Norris after gaining an advantage off-track in the three-way fight through Turn 1.

Red Bull didn’t react to Hamilton or Norris’ pitlane activity, instead focusing on their driver’s inability to brake and enter corners in the inherited race lead.

Verstappen relinquished the uncomfortable lead position as he pitted on Lap 21, remaining stationary in his grid box for three seconds before exiting in P5, losing out to Hamilton in the process. 

That loss led to a very angry Verstappen circulating in Hungary, with the Dutchman throwing profanities at his pit wall for the remaining 50 laps. 

Things were looking up for the Red Bull driver as he fought with Charles Leclerc for fourth place, making the  DRS-assisted move stick into Turn 1 before hunting down his 2021 rival.

Later approaching the Mercedes blinded by frustration, Verstappen overstepped as he charged down the inside of the first corner, locking up and making contact that sent his own vehicle into the air.

The incident is currently under investigation, with Verstappen summoned to the stewards and the medical centre for the Lap 63 moment.

He crossed the line behind Charles Leclerc and with Carlos Sainz ending two seconds back, ready to capitalise in case of a penalty.

Meanwhile, Hamilton avoided damage in the unexpected contact, going on to secure a record-breaking and history-making 200th podium in F1, poetically sharing the podium with two drivers from his former team.

As for the two front-runners turned back-markers, Sergio Perez and George Russell clawed their way into the points in Hungary. 

Not contesting in the five-way podium fight, the duo disposed of the midfield cars from their out-of-position starting grid slots to finish in P7 and P8, with Perez leading the charge.

Almost every team’s post-race debrief will be a tense one as the sun sets in Budapest, with the drivers needing to make sense of their race before a quick mental turnaround comes into play.

The field will make the short journey to Belgium for the always thrilling outing at Spa-Francorchamps next weekend, running across July 26-18 as McLaren seeks to record a much smoother 1-2 finish.

Image: Andy Hone / LAT Images

Hungarian Grand Prix Results:

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