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McLaren Formula 1 leaders Zak Brown and Stella attributed competitors for the incident between Oscar Piastri and Norris at the beginning of the United States Grand Prix sprint event.

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

The crash took both McLaren drivers out of the event, along with the Fernando Alonso, who was on the inner side of the Sauber driver.

Team Executives Express Disappointment Over Crash

Brown, the team's CEO, commented to broadcasters that some of the racing at the front was "inexperienced", adding: "Obviously Hulkenberg hit Oscar and he had no business being where he was."

McLaren F1 boss Stella stated: "Our feeling is that we are displeased that we didn't have the opportunity to compete."

"It's surprising that some racers with a lot of experience fail to act with justful prudence. Go to the initial turn, make sure you don't damage competitors and carry on."

McLaren indicated that Stella was mentioning both the Sauber driver and Alonso.

Differing Perspectives on the Incident

However, 1996 world champion Hill, commentating for BBC Radio 5 Sports Extra, 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 pass his teammate.

Piastri had a stronger launch than the Briton and at first competed on the outside on the uphill entry to the corner.

But he then moved inside in an effort to get a run on his teammate on the way out, only to collide with Hulkenberg.

Driver Reactions After the Collision

Piastri said: "Not ideal but I haven't seen what happened, I tried to cut back on Lando and we were both very far from the apex and then got a hit and it propelled me into Lando. Unfortunate."

His teammate commented: "I just got hit, right? I was not at fault. Further back events unfolded 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 drivers behind just being a bit reckless and we are the consequence of that."

The Aston Martin driver said: "At one point I believed I was in the right place on the inner side, but some cars came very fast from the outside switching back and then I was there in the middle."

Hulkenberg, who had qualified a season-best fourth, said: "Major disappointment. All the good work from yesterday in the trash. Just chaotic."

"Piastri steered inward pretty aggressively trying to get the undercut and way out of Turn One but I cannot vanish."

"I had Fernando challenge on the inner side and I couldn't see him any more. I wanted to leave space for him and then Oscar turned in and the collision was inevitable."

Post-Crash and Team Response

The team will analyze the crash with their drivers but only after the event weekend. Both vehicles needed extensive work before grand prix qualifying at 10 PM BST on the weekend.

The team principal said: "In general disappointed but we take it on the chin, we are now focusing on repairing the cars, there is a lot to do and then we will restart the event from there."

"We are in a competitive place from our competitiveness point of view so I trust we have the possibility to race, race normally and utilize our capabilities."

"The points are the key thing, I prefer not to talk about bad intentions, just prudence. A little more prudence would be beneficial for everyone."

Championship Implications

The sprint event was taken by the Verstappen, who closed in on both team racers in the championship - he is now 55 points behind the Australian and 33 behind of the Briton.

The team boss said: "The consequence is what the maths says - we lost eight championship points with both racers, but we concentrate on ourselves. We have a highly capable car and two skilled drivers. We anticipate just some standard competition."

The Red Bull driver said he was approaching the title race race by race.

US GP

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

Live commentary on BBC Radio 5 Live, Sports Extra and extra coverage; live text updates on BBC Sport website and app