Stella warns Piastri-Leclerc contact could lead to a ‘very big’ crash

McLaren demands lessons from Spa contact

Andrea Stella has warned that Formula 1 must learn from the contact between Oscar Piastri and Charles Leclerc during the Belgian Grand Prix, arguing that a similar incident could produce a “very big” crash.

The incident formed part of an eventful race at Spa, covered in our review of the key moments from the 2026 Belgian Grand Prix. For McLaren, however, the consequences were more specific: Piastri’s MCL40 suffered floor damage that cost him between two and three tenths per lap for the rest of the race.

That performance loss dropped the Australian to fifth. He finished 19 seconds behind race winner Kimi Antonelli and nearly 17 seconds behind Leclerc, who took second place.

Stewards clear Leclerc of further action

The stewards investigated the contact but imposed no penalty. Their decision stated that Leclerc had followed the racing line and had not deliberately crowded Piastri towards the edge of the track.

Speaking to media, including RacingNews365, Stella questioned which elements had been decisive in the ruling and suggested that the relative position of the cars may have played a central role.

“I will have to review what elements have been taken into account by the stewards, whether the determinant here is the relative position between Oscar’s front axle and Leclerc’s car,” Stella said.

He argued that when two cars remain alongside one another for an extended period, the car defending the inside should leave sufficient room away from the racing line.

“Because if there’s a contact that is not controlled, then the crash is going to be very big,” he added.

Stella stopped short of offering a definitive judgment before reviewing the official decision, but maintained that the incident should provide a learning opportunity.

What the decision said

The stewards concluded that Piastri had “some overlap”, but that the front axle of Car 81 was not ahead of the front axle of Car 16. They also determined there was no possibility of Piastri completing the overtake from that position.

The document added that Leclerc had not deliberately forced Piastri off the track and had moved slightly left to open the line for Turn 5. The resulting side-to-side contact was therefore treated as a racing incident, despite the significant performance cost to McLaren.