Lando Norris has rejected complaints from McLaren teammate Oscar Piastri after the pair collided during the Singapore Grand Prix, insisting his overtaking move was justified. The incident occurred on the opening lap when Norris attempted to pass Piastri at Turn 1, clipping the Red Bull of Max Verstappen before making contact with his teammate.
Norris argued that any driver would have attempted the same move. 'Anyone on the grid would have done exactly the same thing as I did, so if you fault me for just going on the inside of a big gap then you should not be in Formula One,' he said. 'There was nothing wrong with what I did.'
The clash left Piastri furious, as he believed Norris had forced him off the track. Piastri called for the team to intervene and order Norris to give back the position, but McLaren declined to do so. The stewards also took no action.
Norris acknowledged he misjudged the closeness to Verstappen but maintained he would have ended up ahead anyway. 'I misjudged a little bit how close I was to Max, but that is racing,' he said. 'With the championship position I am in, I cannot afford to do that compared to him.'
Piastri said he would review the incident further before forming a final opinion. 'I need to look more at the replays and in more detail and come to my conclusion then,' he stated. 'It is the first lap, tensions are high and we are encouraged to share our views.'
McLaren team principal Andrea Stella said the team would discuss the matter internally. 'We have to put everything in perspective. It's the comments from a driver in a Formula One car, there's the heat of the moment,' he noted. 'As usual we will have a good conversation, build from there and come up stronger.'
