"Oscar Piastri is a better man than me": NBA superstar Joel Embiid reacts to McLaren's mid-race driver swap

McLaren had ordered Oscar Piastri to hand back the second position to Lando Norris after the latter had suffered a slow stop. This led the Philadelphia 76ers star, Joel Embiid, to share his take on the saga that unfolded.

Norris had started ahead of Piastri at the Italian GP. Moreover, the two remained in the same formation that they had started the race in for the majority of the event. However, this changed when the championship leader was brought into the pits, with his new set of boots being bolted on in sub-two seconds.

Norris came in on the next lap, and it was anticipated that he would remain ahead of his teammate after his pitstop. But disaster seemingly struck as he held for four more seconds in the pit box than Piastri. This allowed the 24-year-old to get past his championship rival in the pit sequence.

But, McLaren soon jumped on the radio and ordered Piastri to let his teammate past him. Though he was hesitant initially, the championship leader eventually complied, leaving the F1 fandom polarized on whether he should have let Norris through or not.

Subsequently, Embiid joined in on the conversation, as he shared his verdict on the whole ordeal:

"These papaya rules are something else lmao….. Oscar [Piastri] is a better man than me."

Joel Embiid

@JoelEmbiid

These papaya rules are something else lmao….. Oscar is a better man than me

With Lando Norris finishing ahead of Oscar Piastri, the latter's advantage at the top of the championship table was reduced to 31 points.

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Oscar Piastri gives his take on the saga that played out during the Italian GP

McLaren's Lando Norris (L) and Oscar Piastri (R) at the 2025 F1 Grand Prix of Italy - Source: Getty

Lando Norris' slow pitstop had eroded the buffer that he had built to Oscar Piastri during the Italian GP. While the Australian seemingly had no role in the slow pitstop, he eventually agreed to hand over P2 to Norris.

When asked about his opinion on the situation, Piastri said (via F1's official website):

"There were clearly valid reasons for swapping back. Lando qualified ahead and was ahead for the whole race, so I get that. There’s just some things we need to discuss."

Meanwhile, reflecting on the rest of the race, he added:

"We went so long that the soft seemed like a good tire to put on, and we were just staying out for Safety Cars if we got any, but eventually Max got back into our pit window so there wasn’t any point staying out much longer. A little 'inchident' at the end!... I was happy and the pace was really strong, so yeah, some good things to learn there. Maybe not the best opening lap or two either, which didn’t really help things, but nothing too much to complain about."

On the other hand, Max Verstappen winning the race aided Oscar Piastri. Had the Dutchman not been at the forefront, Norris would have won the race and made a further four-point dent in the championship standings.

So, all did not go wrong for the championship leader in Monza as he sets his sights on the next race weekend in Azerbaijan.