Oscar Piastri’s strong qualifying result at Monza has been undone by a three-place grid penalty after the stewards found that he impeded Liam Lawson during the closing stages of Q2.
Piastri had qualified third fastest, putting McLaren in a strong position for Sunday. But the incident with Lawson came as the Red Bull driver was preparing to begin his final flying lap. Piastri was on an out-lap approaching the first chicane and, after slowing to allow Max Verstappen through, ended up ahead of Lawson and delayed the New Zealander on the run towards Curva Grande.
The penalty means Piastri drops from third to sixth on the grid, promoting Charles Leclerc and Lewis Hamilton onto the second row, while Max Verstappen also moves ahead of the McLaren.
It is another setback for Piastri at a time when McLaren appear to have rediscovered their form. With Lando Norris winning the last two Grands Prix, Monza was already shaping up to be an important weekend for the team, but Piastri will now have more work to do on Sunday if he is to challenge at the front.