Lando Norris says “I’d do the identical” as Max Verstappen if his rival had been dashing underneath double yellow flags, after he was penalised for the offence in Qatar.
The McLaren driver accepted that “I fucked it up” after being given a 10s stop-go penalty throughout Formulation 1’s Qatar Grand Prix, which dropped him from second to ending an eventual tenth.
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Norris was monitoring Verstappen’s Purple Bull in a cat-and-mouse battle throughout the opening stint when yellow flags have been waved on the pit straight for particles, a stray wing mirror from Alex Albon’s Williams.
Verstappen radioed his workforce to verify if Norris had slowed underneath the yellows, after he lowered the chief’s benefit to 1.2 seconds, and following dialogue with the stewards Norris was swiftly positioned underneath investigation.
Talking afterwards, the Briton accepted that the penalty was official if he had didn’t heed yellow flags and admitted he would have completed the identical in elevating the purpose if the shoe had been on the opposite foot.
“Good, good on him,” Norris responded when instructed that Verstappen had reported him. “That is what everybody does. I’d do the identical.”
Lando Norris, McLaren MCL38, serves a penalty within the pit lane
Picture by: Steven Tee / Motorsport Photos
Norris initially dropped to final after serving the penalty, earlier than surging again into the factors by passing Valtteri Bottas’s Sauber.
He additionally took quickest lap, however was disillusioned to attain solely two factors regardless of having what he described as “the quickest automobile on the market as we speak”.
The outcome means Ferrari stays in competition to grab the constructors’ title away from McLaren in subsequent weekend’s Abu Dhabi season finale, with the papaya workforce holding a 21-point benefit regardless of Charles Leclerc beating Oscar Piastri to second.
Confirming he wouldn’t search to enchantment the penalty, which he stated was “appropriate” regardless of its draconian nature, Norris stated: “Dissatisfied in fact.
“I’ve let the workforce down, the workforce gave me an awesome automobile as we speak, simply the quickest on the market, and I fucked it up.
“I do not know what I did fallacious. I am not an fool, if there is a yellow flag I do know I must decelerate. That is rule primary, you study in go-karts.
“For some motive I did not do this as we speak, as a result of I’ve not seen it or I’ve missed it or one thing. So I’ve to take it on the chin.
“They assume I’ve completed one thing fallacious, I will need to have completed one thing fallacious. And I can solely apologise for the remainder of the 12 months to the workforce.”
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Norris was additionally handed three penalty factors on his license.
The stewards’ doc stated: “The telemetry and on-board audio clearly confirmed that the driving force of Automotive 4 didn’t make any discount in pace within the yellow sector. The double waved yellow flags and yellow lights have been clearly seen to him.
“Compliance with the yellow flag guidelines is paramount for the security of all events and this requirement is clearly famous within the first merchandise of the Race Director’s Occasion Notes at each occasion.”
On this article
James Newbold
Formulation 1
Max Verstappen
Lando Norris
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