NORRIS CALLS FOR COLAPINTO BAN AFTER BAKU CRASH TAKES OUT THREE CARS

Lando Norris has called for Franco Colapinto to receive a race ban after a collision during a safety car restart at the Azerbaijan Grand Prix ended his race. Colapinto locked his brakes and slid into teammate Pierre Gasly, who was then knocked into Norris, forcing all three cars to retire. "Give him a ban, it's quite simple," Norris said, calling on the FIA to be stricter and hand out bans for this kind of driving. He said the incident was careless, costly in terms of damaged parts, and that those responsible "don't deserve to be in Formula 1." Norris said any driver causing a crash on a restart in this way should face at least a one-race ban. Colapinto apologised to Gasly and the Alpine team, saying: "I can be sorry to everyone. It's been a big mistake, of course. I just locked up and then I was very out of control."

Race winner George Russell and second-placed Max Verstappen both said a ban would be too severe. Russell said safety car restarts on cold tyres can turn a small mistake into a big consequence, and argued that race bans should be reserved for drivers who act dangerously and recklessly on purpose rather than by error. Verstappen said it mattered that Colapinto appeared aware of what he had done and had apologised. McLaren's Oscar Piastri also finished outside the top ten after a late lock-up at turn one, adding to a difficult day for the team.

No indication was given of any FIA action against Colapinto following the race. The governing body has not been reported as commenting on Norris's call for stricter penalties for restart incidents. The dispute leaves differing views among the drivers over how such collisions should be punished, with Norris pressing for tougher sanctions and Russell and Verstappen favouring leniency for unintentional errors.