‘Nasty' Oscar Piastri act called out by former world champ

Don't miss out on the headlines from F1. Followed categories will be added to My News.
Lando Norris accepted the blame, but outspoken 1997 F1 world champion Jacques Villeneuve says Oscar Piastri is not entirely without fault for the bundle between the two McLarens in Canada.
The dig at the world championship leader is the latest chapter in Villeneuve's book of disdain for Australian drivers after his regular targeting of Daniel Ricciardo.
Like his scathing assessments of Ricciardo during the twilight of his F1 career, the Canadian's opinion on the Norris-Piastri incident is sure to raise eyebrows.
Fox Sports, available on Kayo Sports, is the only place to watch every qualifying session and race in the 2025 FIA Formula One World Championship™ LIVE in 4K. New to Kayo? Get your first month for just $1. Limited time offer.
As the two McLarens hunted a podium place in the dying laps of the Grand Prix won by Mercedes' George Russell, Norris crashed into the back of Piastri after anticipating a gap would open up on the inside of the first turn.
The Australian held his line however, Norris lost control, and slammed into the pit wall, wrecking his car and his race with three laps remaining.
Piastri drove on unscathed and held on to finish fourth, widening his gap over Norris in the drivers' standings to 22 points as a result.
The Brit immediately apologised on the team radio before making the walk of shame back to the garage.
Post-race, he reiterated those words to Piastri face-to-face, and then stressed his sorrow once again in his press conference.
McLaren CEO Zak Brown thanked Norris publicly for his 'candour', while Piastri said his teammate's willingness to admit his error was a great quality to have.
Team principal Andrea Stella, meanwhile, said Norris made a 'misjudgement' that 'should have not happened'.
Lando Norris (right) went for a gap that wasn't quite there. Photo: Fox Sports.
Lando Norris walks away from his damaged car after a crash. Photo:/AFP.
The FIA stewards placed the responsibility for the incident firmly on Norris' shoulders too, slapping him with a redundant five-second time penalty.
The views of everyone directly involved contradicted those, however, of Villeneuve, who couldn't resist yet another chance to target an Australian driver.
'The clash between the two McLaren drivers, [it was] easy to point the finger at Norris,' he said.
'He realised too late that Piastri was moving towards the left because he had his nose in the gearbox of Piastri, he didn't realise it and Piastri was edging gradually towards the left.
'He's not supposed to be doing that, it was a little bit nasty, so there will be some talks later inside the team.'
Esteemed F1 commentator Martin Brundle was another who reiterated that Norris was at fault, and respected Piastri's tactics.
'Oscar did well to see the first move coming because Lando was a long way behind when he launched it into Turn 10,' he told Sky Sports.
'Lando probably thought he got him because Oscar was at an acute angle into the final chicane and tight and wide. Oscar wasn't being particularly kind to him, but then why should he? Lando seemed to persevere down that left-hand side when it wasn't on.
'I don't think it was anything other than not recognising early enough that it wasn't going to happen, followed by wiping his front wing on his rear tyres. It was just very clumsy and sort of unnecessary.'
Fans on social media love pushing the bold claim that Villeneuve — who was once engaged to pop singer Dannii Minogue — holds resentment towards Australians.
His comments about Piastri come after whacking Jack Doohan following his crash in practice in Japan earlier this year, as well as his long-running feud with Ricciardo.
Things got 'personal' between Villeneuve and Ricciardo at last year's Canadian Grand Prix when the 54-year-old responded to a question on Sky Sports during Friday practice about Ricciardo's future, by asking 'Why is he still in F1?'.
Villeneuve went onto torch Ricciardo's whole career even more harshly.
'He was beating a [Sebastian] Vettel that was burnt out, that was trying to invent things with the car to go win and just making a mess of his weekends,' he said.
'Then he was beating for half a season [Max] Verstappen when Verstappen was 18 years old, just starting.
'Then that was it. He stopped beating anyone after that.
'I think his image has kept him in F1 more than his actual results.'
After qualifying in fifth that week, Ricciardo then told ESPN that Villeneuve was 'talking s***'.
'I still don't know what he said, but I heard he's been talking s***,' he said. 'But he always does.
'I think he's hit his head a few too many times, I don't know if he plays ice hockey or something.
'I won't give him the time of day, but all those people can suck it.'
Australians are not the only ones in the opinionated former driver's sights however, as he also took aim at race officials for denying fans a more exciting finish in Canada.
The race ended under a Safety Car because of the McLarens crash, and Villeneuve suggested that a red flag should have been waved instead.
'What could have been, should have been an exciting race, turned into a not-so-exciting race,' he said.
'The end of the race – I mean, the rules allow for red flags so we can have a new start for a two-lap sprint, always exciting, and they decided to have a boring safety car finish. Well, too bad.'
McLaren team boss Stella said the team 'appreciated' Norris' response to the crash.
With the two drivers vying for world championship honours, there could be more incidents of its kind to come in the remaining 14 races.
Stella believes the internal rivalry will only make the team stronger.
'We did appreciate the fact that Lando immediately owned the situation, raised his hand, and took responsibility for the accident,' he said.
'He apologised immediately to the team. He came to apologise to me as team principal in order to apologise to the entire team.
'It's important the way we respond and we react to these situations, which ultimately will be a very important learning point.
'I don't think it's learning from a theoretical point of view, because the principle was already there, but it's learning in terms of experiencing how painful these situations can be, and this will only make us stronger in terms of our internal competition and in terms of the way we go racing.'
Originally published as 'Nasty' Oscar Piastri act called out by former world champ

Hashtags

Sports

#FIAFormulaOneWorldChampionship™

Try Our AI Features

Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:

Comments

No comments yet...

‘I shouldn't have driven': Ezra Mam reflects on that crash, Leniu, and the lessons learned

Sydney Morning Herald

39 minutes ago

Sydney Morning Herald

‘I shouldn't have driven': Ezra Mam reflects on that crash, Leniu, and the lessons learned

'Definitely. We've had a chat, and we're comfortable with each other now,' Mam says. 'The biggest thing is that we addressed it. I feel for Spencer, too, it would not have been an easy thing to deal with, either. 'I really respect him for coming up to me and we can move on from that. If we are ever in the same team, I wouldn't have a problem.' Footage of that Leniu embrace sparked a fresh slew of headlines. Mam has been no stranger to them in his young career. Not all of them have been positive. Few figures in Australian sport have ridden a rollercoaster quite like Mam's past 24 months. In the 2023 grand final, for all but the last 20 minutes, the Brisbane playmaker was the best on ground. However, a late Nathan Cleary masterclass wrenched away not only a premiership ring, but also a Clive Churchill medal. Then there was the Leniu incident, and the media storm that ensued. Yet nothing could prepare him for what was to come. On October 18, 2024, Mam was behind the wheel of his ute when it collided with an Uber at Bardon. A child and a woman suffered minor injuries and while Mam tested positive to cocaine at a roadside drug test, he passed the breathalyser test with no alcohol involved in the incident. The 22-year-old pleaded guilty in Brisbane Magistrates Court to one count of driving while relevant drug is present in blood, and driving without a licence. He left court with a suspended license and $850 lighter, but without a conviction. The NRL and the Broncos then applied sanctions of their own, totalling fines of $120,000, as well as a nine-game ban. When asked about what he has learnt from the incident, he offered: 'In hindsight, I didn't think about how my actions can impact others. 'Obviously I'm trying my best to learn from that now, I'm here to make better decisions for myself. 'There's no excuse for my actions, I've got to own that now. I'm still learning to deal with everything. I feel very remorseful for everything that happened. 'For me, I was dealing with stuff in the wrong way. I need to learn from that. That's how I grow as a person. Experiences like this, you can take a lot away from it and I feel like I've taken a lot away from this situation to improve myself in many different ways.' In handing down his sentence, Magistrate Mark Nolan chided Mam for taking 'a cocktail of cocaine and other matters that were found in your blood'. It is a comment that has been seized upon in much of the subsequent reporting, and prompted some commentators to conclude the penalties were insufficient. While Mam makes no excuses for his behaviour, he clarified that the only substances detected in his blood outside of cocaine were 'Paracetamol and Ibuprofen', which were administered to him at the Royal Brisbane and Women's Hospital. 'I shouldn't have driven,' he says. 'There was cocaine in my system, 0.01mg in my blood, which was from days earlier. That's my biggest regret, I wish I had not done that in the first place.' 'There's no excuse for my actions, I've got to own that now. I'm still learning to deal with everything.' Ezra Mam on the crash incident On legal advice, Mam has not been able to reach out directly to the victims of the accident. 'To be honest, I was more worried about everyone else than myself,' he says when asked if he feared his Broncos contract would be torn up. 'I just wanted to care for others in the accident, how they were first and foremost … 'For me now it's about getting back to who the real Ezra is. Doing the little things on and off the field the right way, continually working on myself to be a better person on and off the field. 'For me, I want that final goal, which is the grand final premiership. And to be a role model, for kids to look up to.' The last comment resonates. The personal growth Mam has undertaken since the incident hasn't been lost on Michael Maguire. The Brisbane coach believes a leader is emerging after witnessing the transformation Mam has undertaken after stints in rehab and on a job site. 'He's found a higher appreciation of what he does, what he's fortunate to do,' Maguire says. 'That's where I've seen him grow, he's actually a really good fella. 'As he goes through this period, he will learn how to lead, not just through the organisation, but also his own people of the Torres Strait Island. 'And then there's the community of young men navigating life. He will be able to tell the story of how he has had to deal with adversity in a big way. 'The way he communicates and does things, he has an opportunity to influence many. Influence is the big word I always talk about.' During his sabbatical, Mam undertook labouring work. The experience of concreting, carpentry and Queensland Cup – Mam initially returned to football via Souths Logan – was a humbling one. 'It was a really good experience for myself,' he says. 'I'd wake up at 4:30am to train at 5am and then shoot over to work. I'd work from 6:30-7am to about 3:30-4pm and then be back to the gym. 'For me it was a big couple of months. A bit of carpentry, concreting, bit of everything. I learnt a lot of skills on the way. Coming back into Q Cup, working every day, I'm privileged to be doing what I love doing. 'As he goes through this period, he will learn how to lead, not just through the organisation, but also his own people of the Torres Strait Island.' Broncos coach Michael Maguire 'That's what I've been doing since I was a young kid, I'm very fortunate to be back playing and doing what I love to do.' Just four NRL games into Mam's return, Queensland coach Billy Slater called him into his wider squad for Origin II. The decision hasn't gone down well with everyone, particularly those who believe he should have paid a greater penance. Loading 'I'm really self-focused on the moment, looking to better myself,' he says. 'I appreciate that others may be upset. I can't control other people's thoughts, all I can do is hopefully start to rebuild some integrity over time with my actions. If I'm allowed to play, obviously I'll play. 'I was very surprised and grateful for the [Maroons] opportunity and took it with both hands. 'When [Slater] calls, it's hard to deny a chance to go into the Origin squad, you always say yes. It was a good experience for me.' During a career that has spanned just 60 games, Mam has already endured a bumpy ride. The destination remains unknown, but he is excited about what comes next.