The China Mail - Piastri extends championship lead with Spanish Grand Prix victory

USD -
AED 3.672897
AFN 69.589337
ALL 86.196303
AMD 383.860127
ANG 1.789679
AOA 917.508796
ARS 1184.12022
AUD 1.548296
AWG 1.80125
AZN 1.700451
BAM 1.716751
BBD 2.020004
BDT 122.248895
BGN 1.719869
BHD 0.377015
BIF 2978.161263
BMD 1
BND 1.289088
BOB 6.91329
BRL 5.639032
BSD 1.000478
BTN 85.714411
BWP 13.42977
BYN 3.274157
BYR 19600
BZD 2.009647
CAD 1.372498
CDF 2865.000046
CHF 0.823796
CLF 0.024498
CLP 940.110257
CNY 7.204297
CNH 7.19143
COP 4125.87
CRC 509.280187
CUC 1
CUP 26.5
CVE 96.783962
CZK 21.885994
DJF 177.719813
DKK 6.557201
DOP 59.074211
DZD 131.648031
EGP 49.661203
ERN 15
ETB 136.603394
EUR 0.87925
FJD 2.2549
FKP 0.738134
GBP 0.73985
GEL 2.739942
GGP 0.738134
GHS 10.234759
GIP 0.738134
GMD 71.999992
GNF 8671.189952
GTQ 7.683564
GYD 209.312226
HKD 7.84495
HNL 26.067264
HRK 6.625503
HTG 130.971556
HUF 355.165975
IDR 16339.95
ILS 3.52005
IMP 0.738134
INR 85.70785
IQD 1310.60483
IRR 42124.999858
ISK 127.139918
JEP 0.738134
JMD 159.588148
JOD 0.708989
JPY 143.94497
KES 129.250094
KGS 87.449895
KHR 4012.253568
KMF 434.500154
KPW 899.938458
KRW 1378.699529
KWD 0.30675
KYD 0.833699
KZT 512.413814
LAK 21608.858421
LBP 89641.915111
LKR 299.478195
LRD 199.594474
LSL 17.918047
LTL 2.95274
LVL 0.60489
LYD 5.44659
MAD 9.199853
MDL 17.207661
MGA 4546.831043
MKD 54.1036
MMK 2099.400036
MNT 3577.427298
MOP 8.084845
MRU 39.548122
MUR 45.429595
MVR 15.459639
MWK 1734.817929
MXN 19.2405
MYR 4.244959
MZN 63.910064
NAD 17.919148
NGN 1582.249921
NIO 36.813209
NOK 10.158704
NPR 137.144011
NZD 1.666668
OMR 0.384497
PAB 1.000478
PEN 3.622248
PGK 4.110455
PHP 55.690516
PKR 283.16743
PLN 3.758769
PYG 7993.890691
QAR 3.647886
RON 4.446598
RSD 103.055079
RUB 78.966593
RWF 1415.568
SAR 3.750753
SBD 8.350767
SCR 14.728689
SDG 600.502706
SEK 9.620104
SGD 1.289803
SHP 0.785843
SLE 22.720267
SLL 20969.500214
SOS 571.77717
SRD 37.147501
STD 20697.981008
SVC 8.753697
SYP 13001.814997
SZL 17.910828
THB 32.639782
TJS 9.904631
TMT 3.505
TND 2.978113
TOP 2.342101
TRY 39.157502
TTD 6.788647
TWD 30.004024
TZS 2689.999811
UAH 41.553336
UGX 3643.641183
UYU 41.710188
UZS 12840.453265
VES 94.846525
VND 26055
VUV 120.837102
WST 2.761673
XAF 575.774626
XAG 0.028966
XAU 0.000298
XCD 2.70255
XDR 0.712934
XOF 575.759464
XPF 104.682446
YER 243.850281
ZAR 17.8631
ZMK 9001.200507
ZMW 26.862292
ZWL 321.999592
  • CMSC

    0.0500

    22.12

    +0.23%

  • SCS

    0.3300

    10.52

    +3.14%

  • CMSD

    0.0939

    22.16

    +0.42%

  • BP

    -0.0050

    29.56

    -0.02%

  • NGG

    -0.6000

    71.33

    -0.84%

  • GSK

    -1.1950

    40.46

    -2.95%

  • BTI

    0.9500

    46.34

    +2.05%

  • AZN

    -0.1100

    71.82

    -0.15%

  • RIO

    -0.7300

    58.85

    -1.24%

  • RBGPF

    -1.5000

    67.5

    -2.22%

  • RELX

    -0.5200

    54.06

    -0.96%

  • JRI

    0.0440

    12.96

    +0.34%

  • RYCEF

    0.1550

    12.035

    +1.29%

  • BCE

    -0.3400

    21.94

    -1.55%

  • BCC

    2.5000

    87.6

    +2.85%

  • VOD

    -0.1000

    10.3

    -0.97%

Piastri extends championship lead with Spanish Grand Prix victory
Piastri extends championship lead with Spanish Grand Prix victory / Photo: © AFP

Piastri extends championship lead with Spanish Grand Prix victory

Oscar Piastri drove with exemplary calm and control in a torrid race on Sunday to beat rival and team-mate Lando Norris as McLaren claimed their first Spanish Grand Prix victory since 2005 with a resounding 1-2 triumph.

Text size:

The 24-year-old Australian came home 2.4 seconds clear of Norris for his fifth win this year to extend his lead over his teammate in the drivers’ championship to 10 points with Ferrari’s Charles Leclerc finishing third after a dramatic finale.

Four-time champion Max Verstappen of Red Bull went for a three-stop strategy that resulted in him losing third place in the final laps before being handed a 10-second penalty for crashing into Mercedes’ George Russell who finished fourth.

Nico Hulkenberg, who started 15th on the grid, was a surprise fifth for Sauber ahead of seven-time champion Lewis Hamilton of Ferrari, Racing Bulls’ rookie Isack Hadjar and Pierre Gasly of Alpine.

Two-time champion and local hero Fernando Alonso finished ninth for Aston Martin with Verstappen classified 10th.

"It’s toasty out there," was Piastri’s description of the pre-race heat with temperatures of 32 degress celcius (air) and 51 degrees (track) ensuring high levels of tyre degradation and ice vests for the drivers.

Piastri rejected the soubriquet 'Ice Boy' on Saturday but made a super-cool start to pull clear as Verstappen attacked and passed Norris for second out of Turn One as both Ferraris passed Russell to take fourth and fifth ahead of the two Mercedes.

- Verstappen error -

Everyone started on soft tyres, other than Tsunoda, from the pit-lane, who was 19th in the absence of Lance Stroll, who was unable to drive his Aston Martin due to hand and wrist pain.

Norris finally passed Verstappen on lap 13 on entry to Turn One and began his pursuit of Piastri, as the expected stops began early with the Dutchman, taking more softs – leaving two McLarens leading two Ferraris.

Ferrari called Hamilton in for mediums, on lap 17, to "protect against the undercut". He rejoined ninth, to be followed in by Leclerc.

Norris and Piastri pitted in sequence for mediums on laps 22 and 23, gifting Verstappen the lead thanks to his early stop. He led until lap 30, when he stopped again for mediums, and rejoined fourth just ahead of Hamilton.

Restored as leader, Piastri led Norris by 5.6sec at half-distance with Leclerc, who had saved two sets of new mediums for the race, third until the rapid Verstappen swept by at Turn One and began pursuit.

The second round of stops began on lap 41 with Leclerc who rejoined sixth on his shiny new rubber followed by Russell, to softs, and Hamilton again, on lap 47 for a slow 4.2 seconds that saw him rejoin seventh.

Verstappen pitted on lap 49, for more softs, to chase Norris, who had also taken softs, for the final 15-lap sprint to the flag, and Piastri, who had followed him in.

The top three were separated by barely four seconds as they tangled with traffic amid a flurry of blue flags.

With 10 to go, on lap 56, Antonelli speared off with an engine failure to trigger a Safety Car that enabled Verstappen to stop for new hards, his only option, while the McLarens and Leclerc took used softs.

Verstappen made an error on lap 60, sliding as he exited the final corner allowing Leclerc to pass before a clash with Russell saw him take the escape road.

Red Bull told Verstappen to give position back to Russell but the Dutchman collided with him again to incur his penalty before Piastri cruised clear to take his seventh career victory ahead of Norris.

J.Liv--ThChM