Lando Norris apologised to Franco Colapinto on 28 September for comments he made after retiring from the Azerbaijan Grand Prix. According to the apology statement published on F1’s official website, following the Turn 1 crash in Baku he had called for Colapinto to be banned and said some drivers did not belong in F1. He subsequently acknowledged that he should not have made those remarks.
In his Instagram statement, Norris said he had messaged Colapinto directly after the race to apologise. He admitted he had been emotional, but said that did not excuse his comments. Having made mistakes himself, he understood that drivers could get things wrong when competing at the limit. According to Norris, the two remained friends after speaking and both looked forward to continuing to race.
The incident occurred on lap 36 of the 26 September race, at the first restart after the safety car. Colapinto braked too late and came down the inside at Turn 1, hitting the left side of Alpine team-mate Pierre Gasly’s car. Gasly then hit Norris. All three retired as a result of the collision.
The stewards’ decision quoted by F1’s official website found Colapinto wholly or predominantly responsible for the collision. Although it happened at the first corner after a restart, the other drivers had not acted in a way that contributed to the incident, so the stewards did not apply the greater leniency normally used for first-lap, first-corner incidents.
The usual penalty for causing a collision is ten seconds. As Colapinto had retired and could not serve it in that race, the stewards converted it under the regulations to a five-place grid penalty at his next participation, corresponding to the next round, the Bahrain Grand Prix at Sepang in Malaysia.
