Oscar Piastri has won Sunday's Hungarian Grand Prix after McLaren teammate Lando Norris allowed him to take the lead during the closing stages in Budapest.
While the Australian was able to take the lead at the first corner and hold onto that advantage, he was inadvertently put at a disadvantage by McLaren during the second round of pitstops.
Norris subsequently went in front, leading to his engineer and McLaren pleading with the British driver to allow Piastri to move back in front.
Although Norris initially relented, despite several requests, Piastri retook the lead with three laps remaining to seal his first victory in Formula 1.
After the race, Piastri said: "The longer you leave it of course you get a bit nervous, but it was well executed by the team, it was the right thing, I put myself in the right position at the start.
"With the different strategy we had, yes my pace probably wasn't as quick as I would have liked in the last stint but I was still in the right position to make it happen."
Norris was less forthcoming with a detailed reaction, adding: "The team asked me to do it so I did it.". He did, however, say that Piastri was a 'deserving' winner.
Max and Lewis collide! 💥
— Sky Sports F1 (@SkySportsF1) July 21, 2024
What is going on in this race? 👀 pic.twitter.com/V2vcBUqS3c
Verstappen frustration
Verstappen endured an afternoon to forget, initially being forced to give back second place to Norris after the opening lap despite neither driver being at fault as Piastri stole in front.
Towards the end of the race, the Championship leader then collided with Lewis Hamilton after driving too deep into the first corner, forcing him to lock up and make inevitable contact.
He would eventually finish in fifth position, but that is dependent on a stewards hearing, where a penalty would see him drop to sixth behind Carlos Sainz Jr.
Hamilton would hold onto third for the 200th podium of his career, with Ferrari's Charles Leclerc and Sainz Jr in fourth and sixth respectively.
🏁 RACE CLASSIFICATION 🏁
— Formula 1 (@F1) July 21, 2024
How we finished in Hungary. McLaren's 1-2, Perez and Russell fighting back to the points and a retirement for Gasly#F1 #HungarianGP pic.twitter.com/mzf87ZsGQW
How do the standings look?
Despite his disappointment, Verstappen - as it stands - holds a 76-point lead over Norris, who also extended his advantage over third-placed Leclerc to 27 points.
Piastri is only fifth, albeit now within five points of Sainz Jr, while Hamilton has progressed into sixth position ahead of Sergio Perez.
Darren Plant
