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McLaren Formula 1 executives Zak Brown and Andrea Stella attributed competitors for the crash between Oscar Piastri and Lando Norris at the start of the US GP sprint race.

The Australian driver, leading Norris in the standings by twenty-two points, bounced into his team-mate after hitting the Nico Hulkenberg.

The incident forced out both team drivers out of the event, along with the Fernando Alonso, who was on the inside of Hulkenberg.

Team Executives Express Disappointment Over Crash

Zak Brown, the team's CEO, stated to broadcasters that some of the racing at the front was "amateur hour", stating: "Clearly Nico drove into Piastri and he had no reason being where he was."

The team boss Andrea Stella stated: "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 don't act with necessary care. Enter the first corner, make sure you avoid harming competitors and continue."

The team suggested that Stella was pointing to both Hulkenberg and the Aston Martin driver.

Contrasting Views on the Incident

However, 1996 world champion Damon Hill, commentating for a sports broadcast, said he believed the Australian had not demonstrated enough awareness of the dangers of the opening turn of an Formula 1 event when he decided to move inside to try to overtake his teammate.

The Australian had a better start than Norris and at first competed on the outer side on the uphill entry to the corner.

But he then cut back in an effort to get a run on his teammate on the exit, only to collide with Hulkenberg.

Driver Reactions After the Collision

The McLaren driver said: "Less than perfect but I did not see what happened, I tried to cut back on Norris and we were both very far from the apex and then got a hit and it sent me into Norris. A shame."

Norris commented: "I just got hit, right? I was not at fault. Further back things happened and I just got unlucky and got hit because of it. I am unsure. I need to review a bit more carefully. It's more people further back just being a bit reckless and we are the consequence of that."

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

Hulkenberg, who had qualified a best qualifying fourth, said: "Big frustrations. All the strong performance from yesterday in the trash. Just chaotic."

"Oscar steered inward pretty forcefully trying to get the inside line and exit of the first corner but I can't just disappear."

"I had Alonso attack on the inside and I couldn't see him any more. I wanted to provide room for him and then Oscar turned in and the contact was unavoidable."

Post-Crash and Team Response

McLaren will review the incident with their racers but not until the race weekend. Both cars needed extensive work before grand prix qualifying at 22:00 BST on the weekend.

Stella said: "Overall disappointed but we accept it, we are now concentrating on fixing the vehicles, there is a lot to do and then we will resume the event from there."

"Our team holds a competitive place from our competitiveness point of view so I trust we have the opportunity to race, race normally and utilize our capabilities."

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

Standings Impact

The sprint event was won by the Verstappen, who gained ground on both McLaren drivers in the championship - he is now fifty-five points behind the Australian and 33 behind of Norris.

Stella said: "The consequence is what the maths says - we lost eight points with both drivers, but we focus on ourselves. We have a very competitive car and two skilled drivers. We anticipate just some standard competition."

The Red Bull driver said he was taking the championship one event at a time.

United States Grand Prix

October 17-19, with main event from 20:00 BST on the final day

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