How ‘shellshocked’ Zak Brown and Andrea Stella instantly reacted after Qatar GP McLaren disaster

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McLaren watched on as 17 cars dove into the pit lane as the safety car was brought out on lap seven, ultimately ending their hopes of either of their drivers winning the Qatar Grand Prix.

Oscar Piastri had led every session across the Qatar Grand Prix, winning the Sprint Race to end a disappointing spell of form.

He led from pole position ahead of McLaren teammate Lando Norris, who knew that victory would be enough to claim his first world championship.

Instead, Norris slipped backwards, falling behind Max Verstappen on the first corner and not having the same race pace as his teammate.

Then, the pivotal moment occurred when Nico Hulkenberg and Pierre Gasly clashed on lap seven and brought out the safety car.

Every team brought in their drivers into a chaotic pit lane as Piastri and Norris continued.

It left McLaren unable to compete with Verstappen, handing him victory and taking the drivers’ championship battle to Abu Dhabi.

READ MORE: McLaren driver Oscar Piastri’s life outside F1 from height to girlfriend

Ted Kravitz says Zak Brown and Andrea Stella were ‘shellshocked’ after the Qatar Grand Prix

Ted Kravitz was reporting from the pit lane on Sky Sports F1 (30/11 5:32 pm) and as he was waiting for an interview with team principal Andrea Stella and CEO Zak Brown, he said: “Crofty, you know, at the end of these races, I normally get a line with Andrea Stella or Zak Brown quite quickly.

“Normally, at this moment. They are shellshocked down here at McLaren.

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“They don’t really know what to say; they’ve gone to the back of the garage. They said no interviews until after the podium.

“They need to go and understand, get their ducks in a row, talk about what they’re going to say and manage to explain this all away.”

READ MORE: McLaren driver Lando Norris’ life outside F1 from parents to celebration

Why McLaren were caught out by the safety car at the Qatar Grand Prix

The timing of the safety car in Qatar couldn’t have been more perfect for causing chaos.

Pirelli introduced a rule in Qatar that meant no tyre could be used for more than 25 laps across any session.

Pirelli introduced a rule in Qatar that meant no tyre could be used for more than 25 laps across any session.

For the first time since 2010, three drivers go into the final race of the season in contention to win the championship

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This meant that when the safety car came out on lap seven of the 57-lap race, it lined up perfectly to run two 25-lap stints for the rest of the race.

McLaren claimed that not pitting behind the safety car gave them flexibility for the rest of the race, and if there had been another safety car, then the team’s strategists would have been laughing.

Unfortunately, a perfect weekend for Piastri was ruined and has almost certainly left him out of title contension, and Verstappen will now be breathing down Norris’ neck in Abu Dhabi.