Former Haas manager Gunter Steiner has criticized McLaren for not appealing the penalty handed out to Oscar Piastri at the Sao Paulo Grand Prix.
Piastri’s championship hopes were dealt a further blow when the race resumed after an early safety car, when he made contact with Kimi Antonelli’s Mercedes in Turn 1 and was given a 10-second time penalty, resulting in him finishing fifth in Brazil.
The FIA stewards’ decision to penalize Piastri divided opinion in the F1 paddock. Even Ferrari’s Charles Leclerc, who was injured in the three-car crash, refused to shift all blame onto the McLaren driver.
Speaking on the latest episode of his Red Flags podcast, Steiner criticized the British team for not contesting the penalty imposed on Piastri and branded McLaren the “worst” of the race.
“Why don’t you go there and at least say something to the stewards?” Steiner said.
“Even Charles Leclerc said, ‘So it’s not Oscar’s fault.’ If the other driver who was taken out said, ‘Hey, it’s none of his business.’ Maybe I was a little too optimistic. ”He didn’t say that because he wouldn’t admit it. But, there are three wide ones.
“Where does the race end at a stage where there are so many rules and interpretations and things like 10 seconds instead of 5 seconds? We just line up and run away. Everyone runs away like they started. Be careful not to let anyone see because you get a penalty. But the fans don’t like that.”
Piastri faces hefty penalty in Brazil for three-way entanglement
Steiner would have fought Piastri’s case
Steiner claimed that he would fight Piastri’s corner regardless of whether he succeeded or not, as he believed it was important for the team’s overall morale.
“If I had gone there, I would have flipped out,” he explained.
“It’s also a psychological thing. Of course, sometimes I overdid it, but it doesn’t help. But when you state the facts, you show that you know what you’re doing. You show this, you show that this is wrong. You show your point of view. Can you win? I don’t know. But you always have to try. That’s my opinion.”
“And I know, as you say, everyone is doing their best, not just the drivers, but the whole team, the people at home who have to work again on Monday. It’s not like we’re going to let that go.”
Lando Norris has won back-to-back races in Mexico City and Brazil and is now 24 points behind Piastri with three races remaining.