Oscar Piastri has revealed that he has been suffering from a broken rib, and was suffering with it when he took his maiden Formula 1 victory in Hungary.
The McLaren driver took to his X account to commemorate the first portion of this season being completed, and posted a photo of an X-ray scan of his injury, saying:
“First part of the season done. First GP victory. First broken bone. Rib’s enjoying the break.”
Eagle-eyed viewers of the scan will have noticed that it is dated July 8th, the day after the British Grand Prix, in which the Australian finished fourth.
This means that Piastri will have no doubt been still feeling affects of the break at the Hungaroring race, having taken place only two weeks after Silverstone.
Piastri has been in scintillating form so far in 2024, finishing in the points in every race so far except Miami, claiming four podiums that includes his maiden triumph in Hungary.
He currently sits in fourth place in the Drivers’ Championship with 167 points, having already surpassed his 2023 total by 70. He is only 10 points adrift of Ferrari’s Charles Leclerc in third, and 32 points behind team-mate Lando Norris in second.
His efforts have helped McLaren to a current tally of 366 points in the Constructors’ standings, a mere 44 points away from leaders Red Bull.
Piastri’s win in Hungary came in controversial circumstances, having re-taken the lead from Norris after the McLaren hierarchy ordered the Englishman to cede his lead to Piastri, who gained the lead at the start, after the #4 McLaren was called-in for fresh tyres two laps earlier than expected in the final round of pit stops.
The result gave McLaren its first one-two finish since the 2021 Italian Grand Prix, in which fellow Australian Daniel Ricciardo, who was replaced by Piastri, led home Norris in the papaya cars.
Whilst Norris claimed that his team “made things way to hard for [ourselves]”, he conceded that Piastri deserved the win and was happy to give the position back.
