Norris apologizes to Colapinto after Baku crash remarks

Lando Norris apologized to Franco Colapinto after calling for the Argentine driver to be banned following a crash that ended Norris’s race at the Azerbaijan Grand Prix in Baku. In a statement on Instagram, Norris said he had messaged Colapinto to apologize for comments he should not have made and said the two remained friends. The contact occurred during a restart after the safety car period. The reports say Colapinto’s car made contact with his Alpine teammate Pierre Gasly, whose car then hit Norris’s McLaren, ending Norris’s race. The available accounts do not include a separate steward finding establishing responsibility for the collision. In post-race comments, Norris said a driver who caused a crash on a restart should receive at least a one-race ban. He also said that such driving did not deserve a place in Formula One. His subsequent Instagram statement acknowledged that he had spoken in frustration, but said that was no excuse. Norris added that he had made mistakes himself over the years and described incidents as part of racing at the limit. Norris said he and Colapinto had reached a good understanding and remained friends.