Jacques Villeneuve criticises Oscar Piastri's conduct in battle with Lando Norris in Canada: "It was a little bit nasty" 

Former F1 world champion Jacques Villeneuve criticised Oscar Piastri, saying Lando Norris' crash in the Canadian GP wasn't entirely his fault. The 1997 champion stated that Piastri moved left a little late, which impacted Norris' judgement, and slammed the Aussie for the 'nasty' move.

The incident happened during lap 67 of the 2025 Canadian Grand Prix. Both McLaren teammates were fighting for P4, and the team allowed them to race freely, as the championship race is open.

However, Norris made an error in judgment as he took the inside line to overtake Piastri, only to realise that there was no gap to pass. He touched the back of the Aussie driver's car and lost control, thus crashing into the wall.

That marked the end of Norris' race, and Piastri also ended up sustaining damage. Immediately after the crash, the Brit admitted his fault and took full responsibility.

However, former F1 world champion Jacques Villeneuve believes Lando Norris is not to be blamed alone, as Oscar Piastri, too, made a nasty move. On his Instagram, Villeneuve said (via Fox Sports):

"The clash between the two McLaren drivers, [it was] easy to point the finger at Norris. He realized too late that Piastri was moving towards the left because he had his nose in the gearbox of Piastri; he didn’t realize it, and Piastri was edging gradually towards the left. He’s not supposed to be doing that; it was a little bit nasty, so there will be some talks later inside the team."

However, McLaren was adamant that Lando Norris made an error in judgment. Team principal Andrea Stella said that the crash was unacceptable and Norris will pay a price in his championship run. But Stella appreciated the Brit's admission of fault, saying the team will discuss the incident and move on quickly.

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Oscar Piastri reacts to Lando Norris' apology

Oscar Piastri and Lando Norris at the F1 Grand Prix of Spain - Qualifying - Source: Getty

After the 2025 Canadian GP concluded, Lando Norris apologised to Oscar Piastri and McLaren for the lap 67 crash. In a post-race interview, he admitted that he made a silly mistake while fighting this teammate and cost himself valuable points.

Meanwhile, Piastri reacted to Norris' apology and stated that the latter had no bad intentions and it was an honest mistake. Talking to Sky Sports, Piastri said:

"If Lando has taken full responsibility, then that's how it goes, I guess. Just a bit of a tricky race in general and not an ideal finish. He made quite a large move into Turn 10, held my own into the chicane, and it was definitely a tough battle but a clean one up until that point."

"I've not seen the incident, but I don't think there were any bad intentions involved; I think it was just unfortunate, really. I'll go and have a look, obviously, but we're both fighting for a world championship, and I am very thankful to the team that they allow us to race."

After finishing P4 in Canada, Oscar Piastri has strengthened his championship lead to 198 points. Lando Norris, with zero points in Montreal, retained his second position with 176 points.