Lando Norris cleared of ‘erratic driving’ in Charles Leclerc battle
Lando Norris cleared of erratic driving in sprint race battle with Charles Leclerc following investigation.
Lando Norris has been cleared of erratic driving in his defence against Charles Leclerc on the final lap of the F1 United States Grand Prix sprint race.
The McLaren driver came under pressure from the Ferrari duo on the 19th and last lap of Saturday’s sprint race when a lock-up at the first corner opened the door for Carlos Sainz to slip by into second.
Norris managed to fend off the second Ferrari of Leclerc to claim third but the pair almost came to blows when the Monagasque nearly rear-ended the McLaren during a frantic last-lap squabble.
Leclerc came over team radio to complain that Norris was moving under braking.
But the stewards determined "that there is no erratic driving and hence take no further action".
"There did not appear to be any significant changes of direction under braking, and the move at Turn 15 was a legitimate defending move by the driver of Car 4," the stewards said.
"In Turn 1 Car 4 locked up under braking and went wide, losing a position. Accordingly the Stewards determine that there is no erratic driving and hence take no further action."
Speaking to Sky Sports after the race, Leclerc said he felt the move was "on the limit".
"I did not expect him to do that. Maybe in the heat of the moment I considered that he moved under braking. I have to look back at the images," he said.
"It seems to be on the limit with the way he took the line but in the end if's racing as well. He wanted to keep the position.
"I tried. It was a close call. We nearly crashed but in the end nobody crashed and he finished in front."
Asked about the FIA investigation, Norris replied: “I don't know where....oh the one where you have to turn and brake the whole way around?
“I mean, you brake in the corner. So it makes sense.”
Norris dropped two points to title rival Max Verstappen, with the Red Bull driver claiming a dominant victory to extend his championship lead to 54 points.
Qualifying for Sunday’s United States Grand Prix gets underway at 11pm BST.
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