The ‘stark difference’ between Oscar Piastri and Lando Norris’ moods after crash at United States GP

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McLaren drivers Oscar Piastri and Lando Norris made contact for the second race weekend in succession at the United States Grand Prix.

Max Verstappen continued to close the gap to both McLaren drivers in the championship after winning the United States Grand Prix Sprint Race.

Verstappen qualified on Sprint pole and followed it up with pole position for Sunday’s race, with Lando Norris and Oscar Piastri lining up immediately behind him.

Neither McLaren driver was able to complete a lap during Saturday’s race after a chain reaction of collisions saw Piastri break his suspension and Norris powerlessly watch on as one of his tyres bounced down the hill towards turn two.

Piastri’s lead over Verstappen in the drivers’ championship now sits at 55 points, and the Australian’s struggles in qualifying mean that gap could shrink even further by the time they reach Mexico City.

Norris admitted he’s faced ‘repercussions’ after hitting Piastri in Singapore, but there’s no suggestion the 24-year-old is going to be punished in the same way, even if Zak Brown rowed back on his criticism of Nico Hulkenberg for causing the collision.

However, Ruth Buscombe and James Hinchcliffe noticed a ‘stark difference’ between the two drivers after leaving the scene of the accident, which says a lot about their current headspace as the title battle heats up.

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Oscar Piastri ‘more frustrated’ than Lando Norris after United States Grand Prix crash

Buscombe was speaking to Hinchcliffe on the official F1 Post-Race Show after the Sprint, and she noticed: “Do you know what, the two drivers came into the paddock completely differently? Lando came in, helmet off, went straight into the engineering office, I think to talk to his engineers, and then Oscar came a little bit later, helmet still on and went into the hospitality.

“So hopefully a little bit delayed for them to talk, but again, they’re both sensible, they’ll have to review before they make any conclusions. They’ve been media trained, unfortunately for us!”

Hinchcliffe replied: “There was an interesting thing, though, because I witnessed them then both come to the media pen afterwards, and again it was kind of a tale of two stories because you had Lando pretty calm.

“Jovial’s probably the wrong word, but he was cracking a smile when it’s like, yeah, what are you going to do? He knows there was nothing he could have done differently.

“Oscar came in, looked a little more frustrated with the whole situation. I don’t know if that’s because he’s frustrated at the incident. I don’t know if he’s frustrated that he lost another eight points to Max Verstappen, but it was definitely a pretty stark difference between the general mood between the two when they came into the pen.”

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Jolyon Palmer declares Oscar Piastri and Lando Norris clash a ‘racing incident’ at COTA

Martin Brundle believed Piastri made a mistake that led to him and Norris failing to finish Saturday’s race.

The 24-year-old was taking a risk cutting back into the path of Hulkenberg on such a congested first corner, and could have had no idea that he had no room to move across with Fernando Alonso also among the action.

Reflecting on the incident, Jolyon Palmer said: “So, it’s just the definition of a racing incident this one.

“And I really don’t think you can point any blame on anyone. Lando’s slow start was the catalyst, but he’s not trying to do a slow start. It’s just an unfortunate moment for him. He would have been gunning for the race lead if he could have had the choice.

“But, he’s then tried just to defend and bunch Oscar up, which is the main cause of the collision.”

The impact this crash is going to have on the complicated internal politics at McLaren right now will be fascinating.

Piastri seems to be on the back foot, and while Norris has been quicker this weekend, both drivers will be well aware of the threat Verstappen continues to pose.