McLaren team principal Andrea Stella has issued a clear apology to Lando Norris and Oscar Piastri after both drivers were disqualified from the Las Vegas Grand Prix for technical rule breaches. Norris had finished second behind Max Verstappen, with Piastri taking fourth, but post-race checks showed that the skid blocks on both McLarens were below the minimum allowed depth. As a result, both cars were removed from the final classification.
Stella said McLaren were sorry for the loss of points at such an important stage of the championship, especially after both drivers had shown strong form throughout the weekend. He explained that the cars suffered unusually high levels of porpoising during the race, something that had not happened in practice, and this caused excessive contact with the track surface. He added that the team also found unexpected damage to both cars after the race, which may have made the floor move more than normal. Stella stressed that the breach was unintentional, a point also noted by the FIA.
Norris had started from pole but immediately lost the lead to Verstappen at the first corner. He then had to manage the car carefully in the closing laps, which allowed the Dutchman to pull more than 20 seconds ahead. Finishing second would have given Norris a valuable 30-point cushion over Piastri heading into the final two rounds. Instead, his lead is now 24 points over both Piastri and Verstappen. Norris said he was frustrated to lose so many points but accepted that nothing could be changed now, adding that the focus must switch to Qatar.
Piastri, who left Las Vegas without any points, said it was disappointing but accepted that the team had chased performance and simply misjudged things this time. He said McLaren now need to reset and aim to score as strongly as possible in the last two races of the season.
With a maximum of 58 points available, Norris can still secure the championship in Qatar if he scores two more points than both Piastri and Verstappen over the course of the weekend, including the sprint race.
