Colapinto apologises after lap 36 lock-up eliminates Gasly and Norris in Baku

Franco Colapinto eliminated his own Alpine team-mate Pierre Gasly and McLaren’s Lando Norris from the Azerbaijan Grand Prix on Sunday after locking up on cold front tyres at Turn 1 during a lap 36 safety-car restart on the streets of Baku.

The Argentinian driver clattered into the side of Gasly on the low-grip inside line, with Norris also collected in the collision. Both Alpine cars had been running inside the top ten at the time, making the double retirement a particularly costly one for the Enstone-based team.

“Just a big mistake,” Colapinto said afterwards. “I locked up completely with cold tyres and cold brakes and was out of control completely. So, not a lot to say more than sorry to the team, to Pierre of course, to all the factory. We’ve been working really hard to score points and I threw it away with that big mistake. So, very sad for the team. Of course, a big disappointment.”

Colapinto confirmed he had spoken to Gasly in the immediate aftermath, acknowledging the tension the incident had created. “We spoke to Pierre, he came back and of course he’s very upset, but I will try to talk to him again,” he said.

Norris, whose own championship ambitions were dented by the retirement, publicly called on the FIA to introduce race bans as a deterrent for careless driving. Colapinto did not shy away from the criticism, extending his apology directly to the McLaren driver. “Sorry to Lando as well, to be honest, not only Pierre. Sorry to everyone — it’s a big mistake, of course. I just locked up and then I was very out of control. I couldn’t do a lot. As soon as I touched the brake, I locked up and lost a lot.”

The 22-year-old acknowledged that taking out a team-mate compounded the severity of the error beyond a straightforward racing incident. “It is more than disappointing to take out your team-mate. That’s the biggest part of it,” he said. “If it only affected me, it would be okay to learn, but when it affects the other car as well, it’s even worse.”

Colapinto said he was bracing for a penalty from the FIA’s race stewards, adding: “I do expect to get something, of course. I don’t know, I’m not a steward, so I’ll leave it.”