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McLaren F1 team leaders Brown and Stella attributed competitors for the crash between Piastri and Norris at the start of the United States Grand Prix sprint event.

Piastri, ahead of his teammate in the standings by twenty-two points, made contact with his fellow McLaren driver after making contact with Sauber's Hulkenberg.

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

McLaren Leaders Express Disappointment Over Incident

Brown, McLaren Racing's chief executive officer, commented to broadcasters that some of the driving at the start was "unprofessional", remarking: "Obviously Nico drove into Piastri and he had no business being where he was."

McLaren F1 team principal Stella stated: "The reaction is that we are displeased that we didn't have the opportunity to race."

"It is unexpected that some drivers with a lot of experience fail to act with justful prudence. Go to the initial turn, make sure you don't damage other drivers and continue."

McLaren clarified that the team principal was mentioning both the Sauber driver and Alonso.

Contrasting Views on the Crash

However, 1996 world champion Hill, providing analysis for a sports broadcast, said he thought the Australian had not demonstrated enough awareness of the dangers of the opening turn of an Formula 1 event when he chose to move inside to try to pass Norris.

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

However he then cut back in an effort to get a advantage on Norris on the way out, only to collide with Hulkenberg.

Racer Comments After the Collision

Piastri said: "Not ideal but I did not see what happened, I tried to move inside on Lando and we were both quite distant from the apex and then were struck and it propelled me into Lando. Unfortunate."

His teammate said: "I just got hit, right? I did nothing wrong. Behind us events unfolded and I just was unfortunate and was struck because of it. I don't know. I need to look a bit more carefully. It's more people further back just being a bit reckless 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 fast from the outside switching back and then I was there in the center."

Hulkenberg, who had earned a best qualifying fourth, said: "Big frustrations. All the good work from the previous day in the bin. Just messy."

"Piastri steered inward pretty aggressively trying to get the inside line and exit of Turn One but I cannot vanish."

"I had Alonso attack on the inside and I couldn't see him any more. I aimed to provide room for him and then Piastri turned in and the contact was unavoidable."

Aftermath and McLaren's Reaction

McLaren will analyze the crash with their racers but only after the event weekend. Both cars needed significant repairs before grand prix qualifying at 22:00 BST on Saturday.

Stella said: "Overall disappointed but we take it on the chin, we are now focusing on fixing the vehicles, there is a lot to do and then we will resume the event from there."

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

"Championship points are the most important thing, I don't want to talk about bad intentions, just prudence. A bit more care would be good for all involved."

Championship Implications

The race was taken by Red Bull's Verstappen, who gained ground on both team racers in the championship - he is now fifty-five points behind Piastri and 33 behind of Norris.

The team boss said: "The consequence is what the maths says - we missed out on eight championship points with both racers, but we concentrate on ourselves. We have a highly capable vehicle and two strong drivers. We anticipate just some normal racing."

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

United States Grand Prix

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

Real-time analysis on BBC Radio 5 Live, additional channels and extra coverage; real-time updates on BBC Sport website and app