Oscar Piastri Forgives Lewis Hamilton’s $150,000 Crimes as Holiday Plans Put Rivalry to End

Ever since McLaren installed its upgrade package in his MCL60, Oscar Piastri has scored points in every race weekend. Oh wait, he hasn’t. Had it not been for Lewis Hamilton at the Italian GP, the young rookie would’ve had that perfect record. If you’re wondering how McLaren’s abysmal Belgian GP counts, Piastri’s P2 during the Sprint on Saturday earned him points despite a first-lap retirement on Sunday. If only a seven-time champion hadn’t ruined his chances in Monza.

Coming back to Hamilton ruining not just Piastri’s Italian GP but also his record. Following Piastri’s exploits in his revamped MCL60, Hamilton has become one of his main rivals. In a rivalry, tension-filled situations are bound to arise when drivers go head-to-head. While that’s what happened in Monza—in a sport where apologies don’t come around very often—Hamilton owned up to his mistake. Considering forgiveness is what the holiday season is all about, Piastri revealed his Hamilton-inclusive Christmas plans.

Hamilton’s apology kept him in the good books of Oscar Piastri

Toward the end of the race, Hamilton—in a pacey Mercedes W14—was stuck in P9 behind Piastri. When he finally got the opportunity to make the move he so desperately wanted, Hamilton collided with the McLaren going into Turn 4. While he came out unscathed, Piastri had to make an unplanned pitstop to change his $150,000 damaged front wing. As he dropped outside the points, Hamilton—despite a five-second penalty—finished in P6. But what he did after the race (slightly) made up for his error.

As soon as the seven-time champion got out of his car in Parc Ferme, he walked up to Piastri and said sorry. In a post-race interview with Sky Sports, Hamilton was asked about the incident. He said, “It was totally my fault, and I went and apologized to him.” Although Piastri admitted to forgiving him then and there, what he said on the F1 Nation Podcast after the race solidified his claim.

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Host Tom Clarkson asked, “Oscar, Lewis Hamilton, is he on your Christmas card list still?” Piastri laughed and said, “Uhm, yeah. I mean, he apologized immediately, and he got a penalty for it. So I’m happy he owned up to it, at least, of course. Ideally, it wouldn’t have happened, but it’s quite easy to do in that corner, you know. I’ve seen it plenty of times. So, he’s still on there… just about.” While Hamilton narrowly escaped being on Piastri’s naughty list for Christmas, Toto Wolff revealed something that suggested he’s the only driver who should be on F1’s nice list all the time.

Lewis Hamilton has a quality no one else on the grid does

F1 is a cutthroat sport where drivers do all they can to get the upper hand on their rivals. But amid all the cutthroat-ness, Toto Wolff believes Hamilton stands above the rest because he owns up to his mistakes. After his collision with Piastri, Hamilton radioed in and said, “I didn’t give him enough space.” Speaking about Hamilton’s admission and apology, Wolff commended him in a post-race interview. 

Wolff said, “He’s very sportsmanlike with these things. He is the only one I see out there admitting and saying: ‘I got this wrong.’ We just had a chat. He said, ‘I didn’t see him on the right, and it was on me.’ That kind of sportsmanship is what you need to admire with him. Pretty much everyone is always complaining and moaning just to try to not get a penalty.” 

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Do you believe Lewis Hamilton is the only driver to own up to his mistakes like he did with Oscar Piastri?