Lando Norris’s Saudi Arabian GP qualifying ends early with crash

JEDDAH, Saudi Arabia — Championship leader Lando Norris crashed out of the final session of qualifying at the Saudi Arabian Grand Prix in another early blow to his title campaign.

The McLaren driver lost control of the rear of his car in Turn 4 and slammed into the barriers on the outside of the 150-mph Turn 5.

He was on a quick lap when he made the mistake after setting the fastest time in Q2 ahead of title rivals Max Verstappen and Oscar Piastri.

“F—— idiot,” he said McLaren’s over team radio after confirming he was unharmed in the incident.

The incident will be another blow to Norris’ fragile championship lead, which teammate Piastri narrowed to just three points with victory in Bahrain last weekend.

In the past four races, Piastri has outscored Norris by 20 points having lost a chunk of points to his teammate with a mistake at the first round in Australia.

Ahead of the Saudi Arabian race weekend, Norris said he had attempted to “reset” following the disappointment of qualifying sixth and finishing third at the last race in Bahrain.

Saturday evening’s incident occurred with the majority of drivers yet to complete a lap in Q3, but will likely leave Norris tenth on the grid.

Source: espn.com