Lando Norris has acknowledged he “let down the team” following a last-lap collision with McLaren team-mate Oscar Piastri during the Formula 1 Singapore Grand Prix sprint race.
The pair made contact at Turn 5 when Norris attempted an inside pass on the final tour, striking the right-rear tyre of Piastri’s MCL40 and sending both cars into a spin. The incident cost the team a likely fourth-and-fifth finish; Norris recovered to eighth while Piastri retired.
Team principal Andrea Stella labelled the move “not acceptable” and confirmed internal discussions would follow to prevent a recurrence.
Asked about the nature of those conversations, Norris was direct: “No, it’s pretty straightforward. I can’t attempt what I did. I should never have attempted in the first place, even if the move was on. I’ve got to think of the team that I represent more than myself.”
“It was a mistake on my part, and I let down the team. I’ve also apologised to all of them, I owe them all an apology, and I will do better next time.”
The remarks represent a significant shift from his immediate post-race stance on Saturday, when he defended the manoeuvre: “It was a big gap, so I went for it. I have the right to do that. The rest, we go review as a team.”
Lando Norris, McLaren
Photo by: Alastair Staley / LAT Images via Getty Images
Fourth Place “As Good As We Could Achieve” on Sunday
Norris rebounded from the sprint setback to finish fourth in Sunday’s Grand Prix, though a podium remained out of reach.
Running fifth for much of the race, Norris inherited fourth when Kimi Antonelli — then eight seconds ahead — pitted for a second time under the lap-39 virtual safety car. Norris held a six-second buffer over Antonelli but trailed Lewis Hamilton by 13 seconds, the Ferrari driver struggling on used soft tyres.
Lewis Hamilton, Ferrari, Lando Norris, McLaren
Photo by: Alastair Staley / LAT Images via Getty Images
Norris closed the gap to Hamilton in just 11 laps but could not make a decisive pass. He was subsequently overtaken by a resurgent Antonelli before finally clearing Hamilton. Norris crossed the line 16 seconds adrift of the Mercedes, underscoring the tyre advantage Antonelli held.
“The result was as good as we could achieve today,” Norris said. “I think I could have achieved it in a better way and at least put up a good fight with Kimi.
“Both me and Lewis obviously wanted to see who would brake later into Turn 1. He didn’t even brake into Turn 1, so this kind of meant I was also going off. I could have put up a better fight with Kimi in that case and could have fought for a podium.
“So I could have done a better job in trying to achieve the result we had today, but I think he would have passed me no matter what. Fourth was the best we could do today, so I’m happy I achieved that and we got some good points.”
The result extends McLaren’s winless streak to three consecutive races without a podium, following back-to-back victories for Norris in Hungary and the Netherlands over the summer.
Asked if he felt more optimistic ahead of the United States Grand Prix at Austin, Norris offered a blunt assessment: “No, not really. The car is not quick enough and it’s too difficult to drive. We’re a long way off, so…”
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