Pizza tears during launch

Affects quality

Usually a downstream consequence of the pizza sticking to the peel first.

Ask yourself

Did the pizza stick to the peel first?
Was the launching motion hesitant or interrupted?

Likely causes

#1
The pizza was stuck to the peel and tore free unevenly
Strongly supported
A pizza that has partially bonded to the peel will tear at its weakest point when force is applied to launch it.
#2
A hesitant or interrupted launching motion
Generally accepted
A confident, continuous motion distributes the force evenly; hesitation concentrates stress on one area.

Rescue it now

Patch the tear by pinching the dough back together once it's on the baking surface, accepting some cosmetic imperfection

Prevent it next time

Confirm the pizza slides freely on the peel before attempting to launch, and use a confident, continuous motion

Related

Launching (with a peel)

Go deeper

Guides that treat this as an outcome to improve, an environment to work with, or a flavour to understand, rather than only a problem to fix.

How to get better pizza on a BBQ Pizza on a BBQ Pizza on a charcoal BBQ Peels and launching

Related problems at this stage

Crust is dense Rim (cornicione) did not inflate Crust is pale (won't brown)Crust is tough