Oscar Piastri's Italian Grand Prix Grid Slot in Jeopardy After Stewards Investigation
Oscar Piastri faces a nervous wait over his Italian Grand Prix grid slot after being called to the stewards for allegedly impeding Liam Lawson in a tense end to qualifying at Monza.
The Australian had done the hard work on Saturday, muscling his McLaren into third place on the grid behind polesitter Pierre Gasly and Mercedes driver George Russell. But as the paddock began to wind down, his name appeared on the FIA summons sheet at 17:40 local time, and the complexion of the second row suddenly looked far less secure.
Flashpoint in Q2
The incident at the heart of the investigation came in the dying seconds of Q2.
Lawson, in his second Red Bull outing of the year as stand-in for the injured Isack Hadjar, was building up for a final flying lap that could have pushed him into the top 10 shootout. Piastri, on an out-lap, approached the first chicane with traffic rapidly converging.
He slowed to let Max Verstappen through, Red Bull having released its drivers earlier in the phase. That part was routine. What followed was not.
As the cars funneled into the chicane, Piastri slotted back into line ahead of Lawson. The McLaren stayed in front through the complex and onto the exit, costing the New Zealander momentum on the run towards Curva Grande at precisely the moment he needed clean air and clear road.
Lawson’s shot at Q3 evaporated. He finished the segment 14th.
Speaking at the FIA press conference before heading to the stewards, Piastri admitted he needed to look again at what had unfolded.
“Yeah, I was coming out of the pits and, I mean, the speed difference out of the pits is so, so big here,” he said. “So, yeah, I don't really know where he came from. I need to review with the team.”
Stewards step in
The FIA has opened an investigation into a possible breach of Article B4.1.1 of the FIA Formula 1 Regulations, officially noting that car 81 “allegedly impeded car 30 at turn 2 at 16:38”.
Both Piastri and Lawson, along with a Red Bull team representative, have been summoned to explain their side of the story.
On the face of it, Lawson’s qualifying result was already compromised. Red Bull had fitted new power unit components to the RB22, sending him to the back of the grid regardless of his Q2 position. The alleged impeding didn’t change his starting slot.
It could, though, reshape the front of the field.
Any grid penalty for Piastri would tear up the current second row and hand a potential promotion to the drivers immediately behind him in the order, injecting late intrigue into a race that already promises slipstream battles and strategic brinkmanship.
For now, McLaren’s man sits on a provisional third. Whether he actually lines up there on Sunday depends on how the stewards read those frantic final seconds before Curva Grande.
