World champion Lando Norris has called for Alpine driver Franco Colapinto to be banned following an accident at a restart during the Azerbaijan Grand Prix. Norris was forced to retire from the race after being caught in a chain reaction when Colapinto locked up his brakes, sliding into team-mate Pierre Gasly, who then collided with Norris. All three cars were out of the race as a result.
Speaking to BBC Radio 5 Live, Norris stated, "Give him a ban. It's quite simple." He added that governing body the FIA should be stricter with such incidents, citing the impact on blameless drivers and the significant cost of damaged parts. "If you cause a crash on a restart like this, yeah, you should have at least a one-race ban," Norris said.
Colapinto acknowledged his error, 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." He was issued a 10-second penalty during the race, which will now be converted into a grid drop at the upcoming Bahrain Grand Prix in Malaysia, expected to be around five places.
The incident proved costly for Alpine, as both their drivers were in contention for points, running seventh and 10th before the crash. Racing Bulls driver Arvid Lindblad finished seventh, extending their lead over Alpine in the constructors' championship by 15 points. Gasly expressed his disappointment, stating he was "crushed" by the outcome after a strong weekend.