Lando Norris has found himself at the centre of an FIA investigation following an alleged infringement of the starting procedure at the Brazilian Grand Prix.
The McLaren driver had got away as normal on the formation lap but plans for the original start had to be aborted after Lance Stroll crashed out at Turn 4.
With Stroll’s Aston Martin beached in the gravel, the FIA elected to abort the start just as the cars formed up on the grid.
When the ‘aborted start’ message was displayed, Norris immediately set off again to complete an extra formation lap – which is a breach of the regulations.
Article 47. 1 of F1’s Sporting Regulations states that: “If the formation lap has started, and the Race Director decides the start should be aborted, the abort lights will be switched on, a board saying “ABORTED START” will be displayed, all cars should return to the grid and all Competitors will be informed of the likely delay using the official messaging system.
“The starting procedure will begin again at the ten (10) minute signal. Every time this happens the sprint session or the race will be shortened by one (1) lap.”
Norris should have stayed stationary on the grid and awaited a proper restart, rather than going for an extra formation lap.
A number of other drivers, including Norris’ championship rival Max Verstappen, initially stayed on the grid as the rules dictate – before eventually getting going again.
The FIA made an immediate notification that Norris was being investigated for his breach.
More to follow
