Oscar Piastri's sanction during last Sunday's GP of Brazil generated a lot of controversy and debate, even among Formula 1 drivers. Piastri collided with Charles Leclerc and Andrea Kimi Antonelli in Turn 1, and he was deemed the only responsible for the crash by FIA, because he braked late and wasn't in parallel with Antonelli, awarding him a 10-second penalty when he was second, and ended the race fifth, seeing his chances to claim the Formula 1 title get further and further away.
However, Leclerc (who was the main affected of the accident as he was forced to retire from the race) thinks that the sanction is not fair, and Kimi Antonelli and Piastri should share the blame: "I think in this case Kimi knew Oscar was on the inside, so even though they weren't side-by-side, which is how the rules are written, you can't take a corner as if there's no one on the inside, regardless of how far away they are", he said (via AS). "For me, it's more of a 50-50 blame for Kimi and Oscar. I don't think Oscar deserves all the blame, although it doesn't really matter because it was the end of my race and it was frustrating".
Antonelli admitted that he didn't see Piastri when he "accelerated in a wet area and spun at the worst possible moment", while Piastri says he "wouldn't do anything differently if he had the same opportunity", joking that "he can't just disappear" when braking at the apex of the turn.
The 10-second penalty could be fatal, but Piastri still has three more Grand Prix to try and surpass his McLaren teammate, despite the 24-point difference... with Verstappen on their tails.