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McLaren Formula 1 leaders Zak Brown and Stella blamed competitors for the collision between Piastri and Norris at the start of the United States Grand Prix sprint race.

Piastri, leading Norris in the standings by 22 points, bounced into his team-mate after colliding with the Nico Hulkenberg.

The incident forced out both McLaren drivers out of the race, along with Aston Martin's Fernando Alonso, who was on the inside of the Sauber driver.

McLaren Leaders Express Disappointment Over Crash

Brown, McLaren Racing's chief executive officer, stated to broadcasters that some of the driving at the front was "unprofessional", adding: "Clearly Nico drove into Piastri and he had no business being where he was."

The team boss Andrea Stella added: "The reaction is that we are disappointed that we were denied the possibility to race."

"It is unexpected that some racers with a lot of experience fail to act with necessary care. Go to the first corner, ensure you avoid harming other drivers and continue."

McLaren clarified that the team principal was mentioning both the Sauber driver and the Aston Martin driver.

Differing Perspectives on the Incident

Nevertheless, 1996 world champion Hill, commentating for a sports broadcast, said he thought Piastri had not shown enough understanding of the dangers of the opening turn of an F1 race when he decided to move inside to try to pass Norris.

The Australian had a stronger launch than the Briton and initially competed on the outside on the ascending entry to the corner.

But he then moved inside in an effort to get a advantage on Norris on the exit, only to hit the Sauber driver.

Racer Comments After the Incident

Piastri said: "Not ideal but I did not see what happened, I tried to cut back on Norris and we were both quite distant from the apex and then were struck and it sent me into Norris. A shame."

Norris said: "I just got hit, right? I was not at fault. Further back events unfolded and I just got unlucky and was struck because of it. I am unsure. I need to look a bit more thoroughly. It's more drivers further back just being a bit careless and we are the consequence of that."

The Aston Martin driver said: "At one point I thought I was in the correct position on the inner side, but some vehicles came very quickly from the outside switching back and then I was there in the center."

The Sauber driver, who had qualified a best qualifying fourth, said: "Big frustrations. All the strong performance from the previous day in the bin. Just messy."

"Piastri turned in pretty aggressively trying to get the inside line and way out of Turn One but I can't just disappear."

"I had Alonso challenge on the inside and I was unable to see him any more. I wanted to provide room for him and then Oscar turned in and the collision was inevitable."

Aftermath and McLaren's Reaction

The team will review the incident with their drivers but only after the race weekend. Both cars needed significant repairs before qualifying session at 22:00 BST on Saturday.

The team principal said: "Overall displeased but we take it on the chin, we are now focusing on repairing the vehicles, there is a lot to do and then we will resume the weekend from there."

"Our team holds a strong position from our competitiveness point of view so I trust we have the opportunity to race, compete fairly and capitalise on our capabilities."

"The points are the most important thing, I prefer not to talk about bad intentions, just caution. A bit more care would be good for all involved."

Championship Implications

The sprint event was taken by Red Bull's Max Verstappen, who gained ground on both team racers in the championship - he is now fifty-five points behind Piastri and thirty-three behind of Norris.

Stella said: "The consequence is what the numbers says - we lost eight championship points with both racers, but we concentrate on ourselves. We have a very competitive vehicle and two strong drivers. We look forward to just some standard competition."

Verstappen said he was taking the title race one event at a time.

United States Grand Prix

17-19 October, with race from 20:00 BST on Sunday

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