Controversial FIA penalty lights FIRE in feisty McLaren battle

McLaren F1 team principal Andrea Stella has insisted that Oscar Piastri will use the 'harsh' penalty he received at the British Grand Prix as motivation for the rest of the season.

The stewards hit Piastri with a 10-second time penalty for what they deemed as 'erratic' braking behind the safety car at Silverstone.

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The Aussie star was also handed two penalty points for the move that saw his car slow from 218kmh to 52kmh as Max Verstappen took evasive action behind him.

A similar incident involving George Russell at the Canadian GP went unpunished, as Stella bemoaned the decision after the race.

"I have to say that the penalty still looks very harsh," he told Sky Sports.

"There are a few factors that we would've liked the stewards to take into account.

"First of all, the safety car was called in very late, not leaving much time for the leader to actually restart in conditions in which you lose tyre temperature, you lose brake temperature, and the same goes for everyone.

"The 50 bar [brake pressure], it's a pressure that you see during the Safety Car run, when you do some braking and acceleration."

Accepting the decision, Stella pointed to the fact that Piastri will use the penalty as fuel for the remainder of the season.

"We will see if there's anything to learn on our side," he added. "I'm sure Oscar will use this motivation for being even more determined for the races to come, and try and win as many races as possible in the future."

F1 title race on a knife edge

Piastri heads into the Belgian Grand Prix with just an eight point lead in the drivers' standings.

Should Norris replicate the Silverstone result in Spa and lead home a McLaren one-two there will be just one point separating the pair after the chequered flag.

The battle in the constructors' standings is more of a foregone conclusion, with McLaren a staggering 238 points clear of Ferrari in second place.

Mercedes however are just 12 points behind the Scuderia in third, with Red Bull 38 points further adrift of the Silver Arrows on 172 points – with Verstappen responsible for 165 of those.

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