-
Laurence Edmondson, F1 Editor
QATAR — Lando Norris admitted to letting his McLaren team down at the Qatar Grand Prix after he was given a 10-second stop-go penalty for failing to slow for double-waved yellow flags.
The penalty dropped Norris from second place to 15th before he recovered to tenth and scored a point for the fastest lap.
The incident cost McLaren points in its battle for the constructors’ title with Ferrari, which will now go down to the final round in Abu Dhabi with McLaren holding a 21-point advantage.
“Disappointed, of course,” Norris said. “I let the team down, the team gave me a great car today. Easily the quickest out there and I f—ed it up.
“I don’t know what I did wrong. I’m not an idiot, if there’s a yellow flag I know I need to slow down. That’s rule number one, don’t go past people.
“For some reason I didn’t do that today, because I’ve not seen it or I’ve missed it or something. I have to take it on the chin. If they think I’ve done something wrong, I must have done something wrong. I can only apologise for the rest of the year to the team.”
The double-waved yellow flags were being displayed after the wing mirror of Alex Albon’s car fell off and was left off the racing line on the main pit straight.
Although Norris claimed he did not see the yellow flags, other drivers slowed and, after their investigation, the stewards said they were clearly visible to the McLaren.
“The telemetry and on-board audio clearly showed that the driver of Car 4 did not make any reduction in speed in the yellow sector,” the stewards’ statement said. “The double waved yellow flags and yellow lights were clearly visible to him.
“Compliance with the yellow flag rules is paramount for the safety of all parties and this requirement is clearly noted in the first item of the Race Director’s Event Notes at every event.”
