Oscar Piastri stuns Anthony Davidson with ‘never seen before’ incident at the Singapore Grand Prix

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Oscar Piastri stunned Anthony Davidson in practice for the Singapore Grand Prix with the McLaren driver’s incident that the Sky Sports F1 pundit had ‘never seen before’.

Friday got off to a shaky start for the Australian after McLaren detected an issue on the rear-left corner of his car whilst practicing pit stops. It ensured Piastri was late to join the party in FP1 as the Woking natives fully assessed the problem with a wheel that became jammed on.

Piastri did not let a late start to the session affect him as the 23-year-old finished FP1 in sixth place with a 1:32.369 lap. But the Melbourne native was 0.606 seconds off the pace Charles Leclerc set for Ferrari and 0.530s from papaya pal Lando Norris, who put one McLaren in P2.

Oscar Piastri stuns Anthony Davidson with a close call in FP1 at the Singapore GP

Yet while Piastri was soon lapping amongst the fastest drivers in FP1, he also left Davidson in shock at the Singapore GP with the McLaren ace’s close call with a wall. His opening session at Marina Bay might have been very different if he went mere millimetres nearer to the wall.

Piastri, who won the Azerbaijan Grand Prix last time out with a brilliant late dive on Leclerc, came close to disaster in FP1 in Singapore. Davidson even claimed it was the first time that the former BAR star had seen a driver nearly crash since Turn 10 was changed back in 2013.

READ MORE: Five unforgettable Singapore GP from Crashgate to Ferrari vs Max Verstappen

Piastri ran deep at what once was the Singapore Sling, which would have sent the Australian into the wall after a brief flight due to the aggressive kerbs, and the McLaren driver brushed the edge of the barrier at T10. But, whilst surprised, Davidson felt the dust played a big part.

“Wow, exit of Turn 10, what a strange place to do it,” Davidson said on Sky Sports F1 (20/09, 11:22). “Basically, he just got on the dust.

“He’s carried the speed he would have done on the racing line, drifted a bit wide onto the dust and you happen to be going slower by that point. Wow, I’ve never seen that before.”

Oscar Piastri will hope Marina Bay’s dust levels drop and his pace improves

First practice is the least representative session at a Singapore Grand Prix as the 60-minute session starts at 17:30 local time, two-and-a-half hours earlier than the race begins. Instead, FP2 and qualifying are the most helpful as they both start one hour later than Sunday’s race.

READ MORE: The most successful Formula 1 drivers at the Singapore Grand Prix of all time

The Singapore GP taking place mostly on public roads, with only the pit section a permanent feature, also ensures dust is a major problem in FP1. But as the weekend advances, the dust levels drop and drivers should avoid repeating incidents like Piastri’s and not stun Davidson.

Piastri will also hope the improving grip levels throughout the weekend move him closer to Norris’ early pace. McLaren, likewise, will hope to see the Australian find more pace to help them retain a lead in the constructors’ championship after overtaking Red Bull by 20 points.