Formula One leader Oscar Piastri won the Spanish Grand Prix from pole position in a McLaren one-two with Lando Norris on Sunday while Max Verstappen was demoted from fifth to 10th for a late collision with George Russell’s Mercedes.
Piastri beat teammate and title rival Norris by 2.471 seconds for his fifth win in nine races this season, and McLaren’s seventh, to stretch his championship lead to 10 points. Ferrari’s Charles Leclerc completed the podium after passing Verstappen’s Red Bull six laps from the end of a race that saved the drama to the end.
“It’s a nice way to bounce back from Monaco. A superb weekend,” said Piastri, who finished third last weekend in a race won from pole by Norris.
Verstappen, who made four stops in total and ended up fighting on the slower hard tyres against rivals with softs, collided with Leclerc and then twice with Russell after a safety car restart with six laps to go.
“I’ve seen those sort of manoeuvres before on simulator games and go-karting but never in F1,” said Russell, who has had clashes before with four times world champion Verstappen.
“I don’t really know what was going through his mind.”
Penalty points
Nico Rosberg, Mercedes 2016 world champion and now a pundit for Sky Sports television, said Verstappen should have been black-flagged for what looked to him like intentional retaliation for the earlier contact.
The 10-second penalty was added to Verstappen’s time post-race, with the driver also given three penalty points to take his total tally to 11 for the 12 month period – one step from a one-race ban.
Verstappen and Leclerc also faced a post-race investigation for their clash. “I tried to push him to the left, there was a bit of contact but fortunately no consequences,” said Leclerc.
Verstappen claimed the Monegasque had rammed into him and should have given back the place.
Russell finished fourth after eventually being let through by Verstappen, who was incensed to be told to do so but reluctantly obeyed.
Sauber’s Nico Hulkenberg finished a surprising and morale-boosting fifth for the future Audi team after passing Ferrari’s seven-times world champion Lewis Hamilton on the penultimate lap.
Hamilton was a disappointing sixth, Isack Hadjar seventh for Racing Bulls and Pierre Gasly eighth for Renault-owned Alpine.
Ferrari moved up to second from fourth in the constructors’ standings, now 197 points behind McLaren.
Verstappen remained third in the drivers’ championship but now 49 points behind Piastri in what is becoming a McLaren battle.
