"Remember Austria 2002": Former F1 world champion compares the Lando Norris-Oscar Piastri drama to the scandal involving Michael Schumacher

1996 F1 World Champion Damon Hill talked about McLaren's situation in Hungary with Lando Norris and Oscar Piastri, comparing it to a similar condition that Ferrari faced in 2002. Earlier today, Norris remained reluctant to give back the lead to his teammate despite the team's orders.

Locking out the front row for the race, McLaren had good pace to dominate the grid and finish the race with a 1–2. They eventually managed to pull this off, however, with plenty of struggles within the team. Piastri led most of the race, despite Norris's pole position. This was because of the early lead he lost, right after the start.

The two cars were running on the front of the grid, with Oscar Piastri leading. However, the team decided to pit Lando Norris first to cover off Lewis Hamilton; this gave him the advantage and the lead of the race. In the meantime, Piastri was informed that he would switch places to regain the lead.

However, Lando Norris remained reluctant, as he did not slow down while the team continuously asked him to. After a long struggle, he finally gave Piastri the lead with less than five laps to go.

Damon Hill took to X (formerly Twitter) to react to this incident, comparing it to a situation Ferrari faced with Michael Schumacher and Rubens Barrichello in 2002.

"The issue is not what was agreed before the race. The issue is that people pay to see a race. Not a display. It always leaves a bad taste. But in the next few hours, weeks, years, people will debate the rights and wrongs of this kind of thing. But remember Austria 2002. #f1"

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A look at the Austria 2002 incident which Hill compared to Lando Norris and Oscar Piastri's situation in Hungary?

During the 2002 season, Michael Schumacher and Rubens Barrichello teamed up for Ferrari. The latter put himself in pole position in Austria that season and comfortably led the race. However, as the race was getting closer to the final laps, the team asked him to swap places with Schumacher, who was in P2.

Ultimately, he had to switch positions because of the orders. This move was criticized by the crowd, and amidst the awkward conditions, Schumacher let Barrichello stand on the top step of the podium. The team was fined for breaking protocol in this way.

Lando Norris and Oscar Piastri's switch was similar to this. There seemed to be no particular reason for the two drivers to be under the pressure of switching, but Norris had to give up his second F1 victory.