McLaren driver Lando Norris has issued an apology to Franco Colapinto after previously suggesting the Argentine driver deserved a suspension for causing a multi-car collision at the Azerbaijan Grand Prix.
The incident occurred when Colapinto locked up at a safety-car restart in Turn One, crashing into his Alpine team-mate Pierre Gasly. The impact subsequently collected Norris, forcing all three drivers into immediate retirement from the race.
In the immediate aftermath, Norris told broadcasters that the driver warranted a strict penalty, stating: “Give him a ban. It’s quite simple.” However, the world champion later took to social media to retract his fiery remarks. According to colapinto, He was “sorry” for his “big mistake” but Norris, speaking to Radio 5 Live, said: “Give him a ban.
Addressing the matter on Instagram, Norris admitted his emotions had clouded his judgment following a frustrating weekend in Baku. He stated that he reached out to Colapinto directly to apologise for remarks he should not have made, acknowledging that racing on the limit involves inevitable mistakes. Tough weekend overall in Baku and of course a disappointing and early end to the race,” he said. Are still good friends and are both excited to get back racing this weekend, me and Franco came to a good understanding. It was wrong of me, i know better and emotions were running high but that is not an excuse.
Colapinto received a 10-second time penalty during the race. Because he had already retired, stewards converted the sanction into a five-place grid drop, which he will serve at the upcoming Bahrain Grand Prix.
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