Piastri learns plenty from his bad brake in British GP

The championship frontrunner was handed a 10-second penalty at Silverstone this month for erratic braking before the restart when the safety car was about to return to the pits.

The penalty cost him the win, handing it to teammate Lando Norris, and trimmed his overall lead to eight points at the season's midpoint.

Stewards ruled the Australian had suddenly braked hard, forcing Red Bull's reigning champion Max Verstappen, who was right behind him, to take evasive action and momentarily overtake.

Piastri said he had done the same manoeuvre in the past, as had others, but accepted it would now be punished by the stewards.

"I looked through it with the team afterwards and I think there's been a lot of learning on both sides," the McLaren driver told reporters ahead of this weekend's Belgian Grand Prix, where he arrived with a narrow lead over Norris.

"I still have my feelings about it I guess, but it's in the past now and I've moved on.

"If it needs to be penalised now then that's fine. I know that for the future, but obviously immediately after the race I was frustrated."

Piastri added that there had been discussions with the governing FIA to clarify the situation and how it might have been handled differently.

"I won't brake as hard next time. It's as simple as that," he said. "And I think also now the threshold is a bit clearer on where that stands, so I will just simply not brake as hard."

Belgium, the longest track on the calendar and one of the fastest, is a favourite circuit for Piastri, though the race will only be held in four of the next six years as Formula One alternates some venues.

"I would like to win anywhere, but here is always a track I've really enjoyed from the first time I came here," the Australian said.

"It's a track that in my opinion should be on the calendar every year as long as Formula One exists." 

Australian Associated Press