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McLaren F1 team leaders Brown and Andrea Stella blamed competitors for the collision between Oscar Piastri and Norris at the start of the US GP sprint event.

Piastri, leading Norris in the standings by 22 points, crashed into his team-mate after hitting the Hulkenberg.

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

Team Executives Voice Frustration Over Crash

Brown, the team's chief executive officer, commented to broadcasters that some of the driving at the start was "amateur hour", stating: "Obviously Nico hit Piastri and he had no business being where he was."

The team boss Andrea Stella added: "Our feeling is that we are displeased that we didn't have the chance to race."

"It is unexpected that some drivers with a lot of experience don't act with appropriate caution. Go to the first corner, ensure you avoid harming competitors and carry on."

The team indicated that the team principal was mentioning both the Sauber driver and Alonso.

Differing Perspectives on the Crash

Nevertheless, 1996 world champion Damon Hill, commentating for BBC Radio 5 Sports Extra, said he thought the Australian had not demonstrated enough awareness of the risks of the opening turn of an Formula 1 event when he chose to cut back to try to overtake Norris.

The Australian had a stronger launch than Norris and initially competed on the outside on the uphill approach to the corner.

But he then moved inside in an effort to get a run on Norris on the exit, only to collide with the Sauber driver.

Driver Reactions After the Collision

The McLaren driver said: "Less than perfect but I did not see what happened, I attempted to cut back on Lando and we were both quite distant from the corner apex and then got a hit and it sent me into Lando. Unfortunate."

Norris commented: "I just got hit, right? I did nothing wrong. Further back things happened and I just was unfortunate and was struck because of it. I am unsure. I need to review a bit more carefully. It's more people behind just being a bit careless and we are the result of that."

Alonso said: "At one point I thought I was in the correct position on the inner side, but some cars came very quickly from the outside changing direction and then I was there in the center."

The Sauber driver, who had earned a season-best fourth place, said: "Big frustrations. All the strong performance from the previous day in the trash. Just chaotic."

"Piastri turned in pretty aggressively trying to get the inside line and exit of Turn One but I can't just disappear."

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

Aftermath and McLaren's Reaction

McLaren will review the incident with their racers but not until the race weekend. Both vehicles needed significant repairs before qualifying session at 10 PM BST on Saturday.

Stella said: "In general disappointed but we accept it, we are now concentrating on repairing the vehicles, there is a lot to do and then we will resume the event from there."

"Our team holds a strong position from our competitiveness point of view so I trust we have the possibility to race, compete fairly and utilize our capabilities."

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

Championship Implications

The sprint event was won by the Verstappen, who gained ground on both team racers in the championship - he is now fifty-five points behind the Australian and 33 adrift of the Briton.

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

Verstappen said he was approaching the title race one event at a time.

US GP

October 17-19, with main event from 8 PM BST on Sunday

Real-time analysis on BBC Radio 5 Live, additional channels and Sports Extra 2; live text updates on BBC Sport website and app