Lando Norris admitted he was caught out by how quickly the field slowed ahead of him during the Safety Car period.
The McLaren driver almost ran into his team mate Oscar Piastri as they approached turn one in the queue behind the Safety Car. The incident occured as George Russell ahead of them slowed unexpectedly and came to a stop on the right-hand side of the track next to the pit lane entrance.Norris said he noticed the Mercedes slowing but was unsure how much the cars ahead of him were reacting.
“I couldn’t see from the angle, and just from where I was, how much everyone had stopped because of George on the inside,” said Norris. “By the time I kind of looked at George and looked back, I could see them, but it’s hard when you’re directly behind to see if they’re going 100 [kph], 200 or 10.
“They were going 10, so I just got completely caught out. I guess it’s my fault in the end of the day. I was just unlucky with it everyone just checked up so much and I just got screwed over by it, that’s all.”
Norris narrowly missed hitting Piastri, ran onto the gravel trap on the outside then rejoined the queue having lost several places.
The stewards have summoned Norris for “driving erratically under Safety Car conditions, leaving the track and re-joining unsafely and/or overtaking another car behind the Safety Car.”
Alexander Albon is also under investigation for driving erratically in another incident which involved Piastri. The Williams driver, who was following his team mate Carlos Sainz Jnr into the pits during an earlier Safety Car deployment, appeared to slow, causing Piastri to take avoiding action.
Norris has been reprimanded for his incident and Albon has been cleared.
Stewards’ verdict on Norris
While following the Safety Car, [Norris] approached turn one behind a group of cars. Car 63 (George Russell) had stopped with a mechanical problem ahead of turn one, which caused the cars ahead of Norris to slow down. Norris explained that, due to the low sun and resulting visibility conditions, it was difficult to recognise that the cars ahead had started to slow earlier than would normally have been expected.
Norris consequently misjudged his closing speed and approached the cars ahead too quickly. When he realised this, he braked heavily and deliberately steered to the left, onto the kerbs and then into the gravel bed in order to avoid contact with the cars ahead. By driving onto the kerbs, Norris had reduced grip available for braking, which further limited his ability to slow the car. In doing so, Norris momentarily overshot car 81 (Oscar Piastri), who was directly ahead of him.
The stewards considered whether this constituted an overtake while the Safety Car was deployed. Although Norris momentarily moved ahead of Piastri, this occurred solely as a consequence of Norris leaving the track while taking avoiding action. [Piastri] immediately repassed Norris while Norris was off the track. The stewards therefore determined that this did not constitute an overtaking manoeuvre and take no further action in respect of this aspect of the incident.
The stewards also considered that, particularly while driving behind the Safety Car, Norris should have managed the gap to the cars ahead and his closing speed with greater care. The prevailing visibility conditions were circumstances which Norris should have taken into account when determining an appropriate speed and gap to the cars ahead, rather than a reason which excused the resulting driving. The need for heavy braking and an avoiding manoeuvre into the gravel demonstrated that Norris had not maintained an appropriate margin in the circumstances.
The stewards therefore determined that Norris had driven erratically in breach of Article B5.13.2a of the FIA F1 Regulations. Such a situation should not arise while driving behind the Safety Car, and Norris was required to maintain a sufficient margin to the cars ahead. However, taking into account that Norris reacted promptly once he recognised the situation and successfully avoided contact, the stewards consider a reprimand as appropriate.
The stewards separately considered Norris’s return to the track. Although car 18 (Lance Stroll) was in relative close proximity, Norris returned progressively and without requiring [Stroll] to take avoiding action or otherwise creating an unsafe situation. The stewards therefore determined that the re-join was safe.
The stewards also reviewed whether, after having re-joined the track, Norris had overtaken Stroll while the Safety Car was deployed. The video evidence showed that, as Norris returned from the gravel, he had already crossed the white line with at least one wheel and, as such, was back on track. At this point, he was ahead of Stroll and at no point did Norris pass Stroll. Rather, Stroll approached Norris while Norris was already in the process of returning to the track. The stewards therefore determined that Norris had not overtaken Stroll under Safety Car conditions and as such also take no further action for this part of the incident.
Accordingly, the stewards impose a reprimand on Norris for erratic driving. No further action is taken in relation to the re-join or the alleged overtake while the Safety Car was deployed.
Stewards’ verdict on Albon
On the approach to the pit entry, [Albon] reduced his speed, causing Piastri, who was following closely behind, to brake and take avoiding action. No collision or contact occurred.
Albon explained that immediately before entering the pit entry road he became aware that he was below the required delta time and therefore reduced his speed in order to comply with the applicable delta requirement.
Piastri confirmed, having heard Albon’s explanation, that he considered the reason for Albon’s actions understandable.
While the situation required a significant reaction from Piastri and could potentially have developed into a dangerous situation, the stewards were satisfied that Albon’s actions were taken in an attempt to comply with the applicable delta requirements and explained the otherwise unusual reduction in speed at that location. His actions, therefore, did not constitute erratic or unnecessarily dangerous driving in the circumstances.
Having considered the matter extensively, the stewards determine that no infringement occurred and accordingly take no further action.
This article will be updated
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