Lando Norris releases statement on social media after online abuse and Franco Colapinto criticism

Lando Norris has released a statement on social media after he faced online abuse following his comments about banning Argentine driver Franco Colapinto from Formula 1. Norris had called for Colapinto to be banned after the latter triggered a multi-car collision during a safety car restart at the Azerbaijan Grand Prix. Colapinto's actions caused a crash involving Alpine teammate Pierre Gasly, who then collided with McLaren's Norris, forcing all three drivers to retire from the race.

Colapinto later apologized for the incident and was given a five-place grid penalty for the next round in Malaysia. However, Norris received a barrage of online abuse from Colapinto fans, including Argentine politician Pablo Quirno who accused Norris of hypocrisy, as Norris had crashed into McLaren teammate Oscar Piastri in Canada the previous year.

Despite the backlash, Norris has since apologized in an Instagram post, stating that his comments were made in the heat of the moment and that he regrets them. Alpine, Norris' team, also released a statement condemning the online abuse, emphasizing that mistakes happen during high-speed racing and no one should face hateful or abusive comments for their actions on the track.

The team reaffirmed their commitment to stamp out online abuse and stand in solidarity with the sport.