Lando Norris has publicly called for Franco Colapinto to be suspended for at least one race following the incident that eliminated both him and Pierre Gasly from the Azerbaijan Grand Prix. The controversy erupted on lap 36, when the Safety‑Car period ended and the field surged back onto the circuit.
Colapinto, still on cold tyres and brakes, mis‑calculated his braking point into Turn 1. Carrying excessive speed, he clipped the rear‑right side of Alpine teammate Gasly, sending Gasly’s car into the outer wall of Norris’s McLaren.
The impact spun Norris into the barriers, while both Alpine cars suffered sufficient damage to force their retirement. At the moment of the crash, Gasly was running seventh, Norris eighth and Colapinto tenth, meaning all three drivers were comfortably inside the points.
Visibly upset, Norris told reporters, “In the end I was just taken out. There are some drivers who really shouldn’t be in Formula 1, to be honest.” He went on to add that, in his view, a driver who causes a restart‑phase collision should automatically face a minimum one‑race ban. “I didn’t see it happen, but if you cause a crash like that on a restart, a ban of at least one race is warranted. The FIA needs to be stricter and start handing out penalties for this sort of behaviour,” he said.
Colapinto immediately expressed remorse both over the team radio and in his post‑race interview, describing the episode as “a big mistake.” He apologized to the entire Alpine operation, to Gasly and to Norris, explaining that cold brakes, cold tyres and a lock‑up left him completely out of control. “I am really, really sorry to Pierre, to everyone in the factory, and especially to Lando.
It was a huge error,” he reiterated. The stewards handed Colapinto a ten‑second time penalty for causing the collision. Because he had already retired, the penalty was converted into a five‑place grid drop for the upcoming Bahrain Grand Prix in Malaysia.
Under the current FIA points system, drivers who accumulate twelve penalty points on their super‑licence within a rolling twelve‑month window receive an automatic race ban. Colapinto currently sits on four points and did not receive any additional points for the Azerbaijan incident, meaning his only sanction was the grid penalty. Norris described Colapinto’s driving as “just careless” and not befitting the standards of Formula 1. “All my components are now trash, it costs a huge amount of money,” he lamented.
“In Formula 1 you would expect drivers to anticipate low grip and cold tyre conditions. When you see a mistake like this, it makes you wonder if the driver belongs in the sport.” The incident compounded Norris’s already difficult weekend, as he had been battling straight‑line speed deficiencies with his McLaren.
Earlier in the race he had been forced wide at the first corner, allowing Gasly to overtake him and drop Norris into eighth place. Gasly, meanwhile, was on course to match his second‑best finish of the season, sitting seventh and showing strong pace on the Baku street circuit. Alpine had been poised to close the nine‑point deficit to Racing Bulls in the Constructors’ Championship, with both cars in the points when the Safety‑Car period began. The crash, however, left Alpine trailing by fifteen points after Racing Bulls’ late surge saw Arvid Lindblad claim seventh place.
Gasly, speaking to Sky Sports F1 after the race, admitted he was “almost lost for words.” He praised the team’s performance, noting that the car had been one of the best of the season, keeping pace with Lewis Hamilton and Lando Norris for much of the race and maintaining a 14‑ to 15‑second gap to the midfield. Yet he expressed frustration at the final outcome: “It’s not an ideal day. We had both cars in the points and still got outscored by Racing Bulls by a large margin.
I hope we can make up for it before the end of the year.” The fallout extended beyond the track. Gasly revealed that he and his family had been subjected to “completely inappropriate” abuse on social media after the incident, a problem that has been echoed by other Argentine fans targeting Alpine drivers. Both Alpine and Colapinto have condemned the online harassment, emphasizing that such behaviour is unacceptable.
Looking ahead, both drivers have confirmed their places at Alpine for the next season. When asked about his future partnership with Colapinto, Gasly replied, “It’s all about respect.
As long as there is respect, anything is possible.” Colapinto echoed the sentiment, stating, “We get along well. Since we first worked together we have had a good relationship, so we will move forward together.” Formula 1 will travel to the Sepang International Circuit in Malaysia for the first time since 2017, hosting the Bahrain Grand Prix. Fans can watch the live coverage on Sky Sports F1, with streaming available via NOW without a long‑term contract. The controversy surrounding Colapinto’s actions and Norris’s call for stricter penalties continues to fuel debate about driver standards and safety in the sport, highlighting the ongoing tension between competitive aggression and responsible conduct on the world’s most demanding circuits.