Norris responds to McLaren ‘not finished’ claim after Piastri clash

Lando Norris said the scenario is “pretty straightforward” for him in that he must put McLaren before himself in future.

The reigning world champion had been quizzed on Andrea Stella’s reveal that talks were “not finished” within the papaya squad, after Norris and Oscar Piastri collided during the Singapore Grand Prix Sprint. Norris displayed clear teamwork by offering to help Piastri during the Grand Prix, a move which pleased Stella.

Lando Norris let McLaren down in Oscar Piastri clash

Norris and Piastri both went spinning in the closing stages of the Singapore Sprint, the Brit having attempted a move at Turn 5 which failed to pay off.

Piastri was out, while Norris finished P8.

With the latter having apologised and the incident put in the past, according to Piastri, McLaren was happy to move on from analysing blame, though team principal Stella confirmed that the Woking outfit is “not finished” with its driver talks, as it wants to achieve a clear, united plan moving forward.

Following the Singapore GP, Norris was quizzed on Stella’s comments and whether he is indeed expecting further McLaren talks.

“No, it’s pretty straightforward,” he told PlanetF1.com and others. “I can’t attempt what I did. I should never have attempted it in the first place, even if the move was on.

“I’ve simply got to think more about the team that I represent more than myself.

“So yeah, it was a mistake on my part, and I let down the team. I’ve also apologised to all of them, and I owe them all an apology, and we’ll do better next time.”

Norris began to put that into motion already by Grand Prix Sunday, his actions welcomed by Stella.

Via team radio, he offered to back Lewis Hamilton’s Ferrari up to boost Piastri’s overtaking chances.

More on McLaren from PlanetF1.com

McLaren confirms fresh Norris and Piastri talks after Singapore clash

Bold Oscar Piastri, Lando Norris contract solution proposed after ‘bad judgement’

McLaren did not take Norris up on the offer, but Piastri was successful regardless, crossing the line P5, one position behind Norris.

“Oscar was unfortunate with a puncture, and I saw there was quite a few cars,” said Norris as he explained his willingness to help his Australian teammate.

“I also had a few problems with the car myself, so there was more of an opportunity to get more points and get Oscar back up the order than there was for me to catch Kimi [Antonelli], because I couldn’t.

“I saw there were like three, four cars in between. So I asked, but I didn’t need to in the end, and we still got the best points we could as a team.”

McLaren remains third in the F1 2026 Constructors’ standings heading into Austin, though Red Bull is now only seven points behind.

Additional reporting by Thomas Maher

Want to be the first to know exclusive information from the F1 paddock? Join our broadcast channel on WhatsApp to get the scoop on the latest developments from our team of accredited journalists.

You can also subscribe to the PlanetF1 YouTube channel for exclusive features, hear from our paddock journalists with stories from the heart of Formula 1 and much more!

Read next: Liam Lawson to make on-stage debut at US Grand Prix