Palmer harshly criticizes Piastri’s penalty at British GP

Former Formula 1 driver Jolyon Palmer has strongly criticized the penalty given to Oscar Piastri at the British GP — calling the decision excessively harsh.

The McLaren driver received a 10-second penalty for allegedly erratic driving behind the safety car — his sudden braking caused Max Verstappen to temporarily pass him before returning to his original position.

“I think he hasn’t done anything extraordinarily wrong. He did slow down the field at the safety car restart with reasonable brake pressure, but I don’t see this as a major moment,” Palmer explained on the F1 Nation podcast.

Palmer pointed out the inconsistency in decision-making — a similar incident four laps earlier involving Nico Hulkenberg wasn’t investigated by FIA. He noted there’s no precedent for such penalties in the past, even George Russell’s similar case in Canadian GP wasn’t investigated.

After serving the penalty, Piastri lost the lead to his teammate Lando Norris — who went on to secure his first home race victory.