Lando Norris was clearly disappointed after the incident in the first turn of the sprint race in Austin, where both McLarens were involved and ultimately retired. The Brit felt innocent and pointed to the chaos at the back of the field as the cause of his premature stop.
The sprint race in Austin ended quickly for McLaren. In the first turn, Oscar Piastri was hit by Nico Hülkenberg, after which the Australian came into contact with teammate and title rival Lando Norris. This led to suspension damage for Piastri, causing him to retire early, while Norris also had to give up due to damage.
“What am I supposed to do? I was just hit. I didn’t do anything wrong,” Norris said after the end of his race. “Something happened further back and I was just unlucky to be hit by it. Drivers at the back of the field are careless and we experience the consequences.” The incident caused both Norris and teammate and title rival Oscar Piastri to have to retire early from the race, a major blow for McLaren who were hoping for a good result in Austin.
