Lando Norris has deeply apologized after the Canadian Grand Prix for his role in the crash with teammate Oscar Piastri. The Briton retired, while the championship leader finished fourth.
“I thought Oscar would move a little more to the right, but that didn’t happen,” Norris told F1TV. “But still, it was a misjudgment and I’m the only one to blame for that.”
Norris was having a good race until the crash. He started from seventh place on an alternative strategy and had the pace in the final phase to overtake Piastri for fourth place. That didn’t happen. Norris crashed into Piastri on the straight and saw his race end abruptly.
“This was stupid, really stupid on my part,” Norris continued. “I risked not only myself, but also Oscar dropping out. That’s the last thing I want. I can only apologize to the team and to Oscar. I made a fool of myself.”
Piastri had slight damage, but was able to finish the race behind the safety car. The Australian didn’t blame Norris much. “It was a tough fight,” Piastri said to Viaplay. “Tough, but fair. Lando tried to overtake me in turn 10.
“He succeeded for a moment, but I was able to take him back immediately. I didn’t see the incident itself at all. Of course I felt that I was hit, but I don’t know exactly what happened.”
Team boss Stella appreciates Norris’ honesty
Team boss Andrea Stella was not happy with the clash between his drivers, although he appreciated that Norris immediately took the blame. “It’s never good when two McLarens touch each other. We need to analyze the incident properly, but it seems to be a clear misjudgment. Lando immediately took responsibility, and we appreciate that.”
“Within the team we have clear agreements, but in this case it was a misjudgment of the distance to the car in front of him. The fact that Lando immediately acknowledged that does him credit.”
The FIA is investigating the incident between both drivers, which could result in a penalty for the Austrian Grand Prix, which is scheduled in two weeks.