Zandvoort (Netherlands), Aug 31 (IANS) Oscar Piastri emerged victorious in a dramatic Dutch Grand Prix that saw McLaren teammate Lando Norris suffer a late-race retirement due to a mechanical failure - an incident that could have major implications for the championship race.

Starting from pole, Piastri got off to a strong start, gradually pulling ahead of Max Verstappen after the Red Bull driver briefly overtook Norris on the opening lap. Norris soon reclaimed the position, and the McLaren duo settled into a commanding 1-2 formation.

The race took a twist on Lap 23 when a Safety Car was deployed following Lewis Hamilton’s crash into the barriers. This triggered a flurry of pit stops, during which McLaren opted to double-stack their drivers. Despite a slight delay for Norris, both cars rejoined the track without losing position - setting the stage for what appeared to be a strong finish before misfortune struck.

Norris continued his chase of his teammate from there and - despite a second Safety Car after a collision between Charles Leclerc and Kimi Antonelli that put the Ferrari out of the race - the fight looked to still be open as the race entered into its final stages.

However, everything changed when smoke started to emerge from Norris’ McLaren with just a few laps to go, forcing him to retire at the side of the track. As the Briton cut a dejected figure, a final Safety Car phase played out which saw Piastri hold onto P1 from Verstappen and seal his seventh Grand Prix win of the season and in the process stretch his championship lead to 34 points.

Verstappen followed in second while Racing Bulls’ Isack Hadjar converted an impressive P4 on the grid to third place, marking a maiden F1 podium for the rookie. George Russell took fourth for Mercedes while Williams’ Alex Albon claimed fifth after starting down in P15.

Haas’ Ollie Bearman - who started from the pit lane - crossed the line in sixth after the American outfit made a one-stop strategy work under the Safety Car, with Aston Martin scoring a double points finish as Lance Stroll and Fernando Alonso grabbed seventh and eighth respectively.

Yuki Tsunoda took two points for Red Bull in P9 while Haas’ Esteban Ocon added to his team’s points haul by rounding out the top 10. Alpine’s Franco Colapinto just missed out in P11, as did Racing Bulls’ Liam Lawson in P12.

Behind Lawson was Williams’ Carlos Sainz, who was earlier handed a 10-second time penalty for a collision with the New Zealander, and Kick Sauber’s Nico Hulkenberg and Gabriel Bortoleto were just behind in 14th and 15th.

Antonelli ended a tough day down in P16, the Italian having received two penalties during the latter stages following his collision with Leclerc, while Alpine’s Pierre Gasly was the final classified driver down in P17.

Norris led the list of high-profile retirees after his late-race car failure, with the two Ferraris being the other two cars not to make the finish on a difficult day for the Scuderia.

--IANS

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