Australian F1 ace Oscar Piastri has suffered a wretched blow – just when he was expecting to line up on the front row of the Emilia Romagna Grand Prix at Imola.

Piastri had delivered one of the best qualifying performances of his fledgling F1 career on Saturday by finishing second behind Max Verstappen, leaving him dreaming of the prospect of a maiden triumph in Sunday’s race.

But the delight turned to deflation within hours as he was penalised three grid places for impeding Haas driver Kevin Magnussen in the first session of qualifying, dropping him to fifth from second on the grid.


 

Instead, Piastri’s teammate Lando Norris took his place on the front row, after his third-place qualifying finish.

Oscar Piastri (pictured) put on a qualifying masterclass ahead of the Emilia Romagna Grand Prix - but was later stripped of his front-row start
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Oscar Piastri (pictured) put on a qualifying masterclass ahead of the Emilia Romagna Grand Prix – but was later stripped of his front-row start

The Aussie was penalised three grid places for impeding Haas driver Kevin Magnussen in the first session of qualifying
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The Aussie was penalised three grid places for impeding Haas driver Kevin Magnussen in the first session of qualifying