Oscar Piastri says he'll fuel his F1 title charge with 'frustration' at race-deciding penalty

SILVERSTONE, England (AP) — Oscar Piastri aims to use the “frustration” he feels at the penalty which cost him victory at the British Grand Prix as motivation to win more races as he chases the Formula 1 title.

Piastri was reluctant to join in the celebrations for McLaren's fourth one-two finish of 2025 after a 10-second penalty imposed for sharp braking behind the safety car meant he finished behind teammate and title rival Lando Norris in Sunday's race. He leads Norris by eight points at the halfway point of the season.

McLaren rejected Piastri's request over the radio for the team to cancel out the effect of the penalty by asking the drivers to swap places. It would have put the Australian driver back into the lead and potentially deprived Norris of an emotional first home win.

“Lando didn’t do anything wrong, so I don’t think it would have been particularly fair to have swapped, but I thought I’d at least ask," Piastri said Sunday.

“It doesn’t change much for the championship. I feel like I did a good job today. I did what I needed to. That’s all I need, and I will use the frustration to make sure I win some more races later.”

Piastri added that he “knew what the answer was going to be” before he messaged the team, but was searching for “a small glimmer of hope.”

McLaren team principal Andrea Stella said the only way that Piastri would have stayed in front on Sunday would have been if the safety car came out and both McLarens stopped for fresh tires. In that event, Norris would have waited behind Piastri.

“Oscar is a very fast, very strong, very determined driver. He proved that,” Stella added. “It didn’t lead to a win, but I’m sure it will lead to many more wins.”

It isn't the first time McLaren has had to deal with an awkward radio situation. Piastri's first career win at the Hungarian Grand Prix last year came when the team ordered a swap with Norris because of pit strategy. Norris only obeyed after a lengthy wait.

Once again, F1 is debating whether the rules are enforced consistently.

Piastri argued that slowing up the field before a restart is “well within the rules,” a tactic he'd used earlier in the same race without incident. “I don’t really get it,” he said.

The stewards ruled that slowing from more than 135mph to 32mph was “erratic braking” and it forced Red Bull's Max Verstappen, who was second behind Piastri at the time, to take evasive action.

That left Red Bull team principal Christian Horner reviving his complaint that Mercedes' George Russell had deserved a penalty for slowing behind the safety car at the Canadian Grand Prix last month. On that occasion, Russell braked and Verstappen, who was second, briefly overtook as he was caught unawares.

Russell went on to win, with Verstappen finishing second. Red Bull's post-race protest interrupted Mercedes' victory celebrations and further strained the relationship between the teams.

“I wasn’t surprised to see him get a penalty. That was what you would expect," Horner said of Piastri's penalty. "It was probably more surprising that George didn’t get one in Montreal, to be honest with you.”

Piastri, too, suggested punishing one incident but not the other seemed inconsistent.

“Going back to Canada, I think you had to evade more there than you did today,” Piastri said. “So I’m a bit confused, to say the least.”

AP Auto Racing Writer Jenna Fryer contributed to this report.

AP auto racing: https://apnews.com/hub/auto-racing

McLaren driver Oscar Piastri of Australia steers his car as it rains during the British Formula One Grand Prix race at the Silverstone racetrack in Silverstone, England, Sunday, July 6, 2025. (AP Photo/Darko Bandic)

McLaren driver Oscar Piastri of Australia waves as he arrives on the podium during the British Formula One Grand Prix race at the Silverstone racetrack in Silverstone, England, Sunday, July 6, 2025. (AP Photo/Darko Bandic)

McLaren driver Lando Norris of Britain, right, is congratulated by his teammate Oscar Piastri of Australia after winning the British Formula One Grand Prix race at the Silverstone racetrack in Silverstone, England, Sunday, July 6, 2025. (AP Photo/Darko Bandic)

TRENTON, N.J. (AP) — Richard “Dick” Codey, a former acting governor of New Jersey and the longest serving legislator in the state's history, died Sunday. He was 79.

Codey’s wife, Mary Jo Codey, confirmed her husband’s death to The Associated Press.

“Gov. Richard J. Codey passed away peacefully this morning at home, surrounded by family, after a brief illness,” Codey's family wrote in a Facebook post on Codey's official page.

"Our family has lost a beloved husband, father and grandfather -- and New Jersey lost a remarkable public servant who touched the lives of all who knew him," the family said.

Known for his feisty, regular-guy persona, Codey was a staunch advocate of mental health awareness and care issues. The Democrat also championed legislation to ban smoking from indoor areas and sought more money for stem cell research.

Codey, the son of a northern New Jersey funeral home owner, entered the state Assembly in 1974 and served there until he was elected to the state Senate in 1982. He served as Senate president from 2002 to 2010.

Codey first served as acting governor for a brief time in 2002, after Christine Todd Whitman’s resignation to join President George W. Bush’s administration. He held the post again for 14 months after Gov. Jim McGreevey resigned in 2004.

At that time, New Jersey law mandated that the Senate president assume the governor’s role if a vacancy occurred, and that person would serve until the next election.

Codey routinely drew strong praise from residents in polls, and he gave serious consideration to seeking the Democratic nomination for governor in 2005. But he ultimately chose not to run when party leaders opted to back wealthy Wall Street executive Jon Corzine, who went on to win the office.

Codey would again become acting governor after Corzine was incapacitated in April 2007 due to serious injuries he suffered in a car accident. He held the post for nearly a month before Corzine resumed his duties.

After leaving the governor’s office, Codey returned to the Senate and also published a memoir that detailed his decades of public service, along with stories about his personal and family life.

“He lived his life with humility, compassion and a deep sense of responsibility to others,” his family wrote. “He made friends as easily with Presidents as he did with strangers in all-night diners.”

Codey and his wife often spoke candidly about her past struggles with postpartum depression, and that led to controversy in early 2005, when a talk radio host jokingly criticized Mary Jo and her mental health on the air.

Codey, who was at the radio station for something else, confronted the host and said he told him that he wished he could “take him outside.” But the host claimed Codey actually threatened to “take him out,” which Codey denied.

His wife told The Associated Press that Codey was willing to support her speaking out about postpartum depression, even if it cost him elected office.

“He was a really, really good guy,” Mary Jo Codey said. “He said, ‘If you want to do it, I don’t care if I get elected again.’”

Jack Brook contributed reporting from New Orleans.

FILE - New Jersey State Sen. and former Democratic Gov. Richard Codey is seen before New Jersey Gov. Phil Murphy delivers his State of the State address to a joint session of the Legislature at the statehouse, in Trenton, N.J., Tuesday, Jan. 10, 2023. (AP Photo/Matt Rourke, File)