Norris blasts F1 drivers after Baku crash

BAKU, Azerbaijan (AP):

McLaren’s Lando Norris says some drivers “shouldn’t be in Formula 1” after a chaotic restart triggered by Franco Colapinto ended the defending champion’s race at the Azerbaijan Grand Prix yesterday.

Colapinto braked too late into Turn One following a safety car period, slamming into Alpine teammate Pierre Gasly. The impact pushed Gasly’s car into Norris, sending the Briton into the barriers.

As others scrambled to avoid the wreck, Arvid Lindblad clipped Racing Bulls teammate Liam Lawson, spinning him around.

“I just got taken out,” Norris told Sky Sports. “There’s just some drivers that shouldn’t be in Formula 1, to be honest.”

Colapinto admitted fault, calling it a “big mistake” and offering “a big sorry” to both Gasly and Norris.

The incident leaves Norris 116 points adrift of championship leader Kimi Antonelli, deepening the damage to a title defence already faltering after Antonelli’s wins in Italy and Spain.

Race stewards handed Colapinto a 10-second penalty. Since he failed to finish, it could be converted into a grid drop for next week’s Malaysia round, branded as the Bahrain Grand Prix.

Race winner George Russell and runner-up Max Verstappen rejected calls for Colapinto to face suspension.

“I think safety-car restarts, cold tyres, a very small mistake can have big consequences. From what I saw today, that’s what it looked like,” Russell said. “Race bans should come from drivers intentionally doing something very dangerous and very reckless. I think it was unfortunate.”

Alpine team boss Flavio Briatore apologised to Norris and McLaren, describing the crash as “a very poor move for a driver of his experience”. He added: “I want to take time to reflect on it and consider what course of action should be taken, so we can learn from it and avoid such a situation in future.”

The crash adds to Colapinto’s growing controversies, following repeated cases of social media abuse directed at rival drivers and race stewards by his supporters.