Grand Prix

Lando Norris Calls Himself an 'Idiot' After Massive Crash during Saudi GP Qualifying

Nelson Espinal|
[US, Mexico & Canada customers only] April 13, 2025; Sakhir, BAHRAIN; Oscar Piastri leads George Russell into the first corner at the start of the race during the F1 Bahrain Grand Prix at the Bahrain International Circuit. Mandatory Credit: Rula Rouhana/Reuters via Imagn Images
[US, Mexico & Canada customers only] April 13, 2025; Sakhir, BAHRAIN; Oscar Piastri leads George Russell into the first corner at the start of the race during the F1 Bahrain Grand Prix at the Bahrain International Circuit. Mandatory Credit: Rula Rouhana/Reuters via Imagn Images | Rula Rouhana/Reuters via Imagn Images

McLaren's Lando Norris had a major crash during Q3, ruining his chance to challenge for pole position and forcing the leader in the Drivers' Championship to start P10 for the race.

The crash was significant, where Norris hit the barriers at over 150 miles per hour in Turn 5 after completely losing the rear end of his car in the previous corner.

He was on his push-lap to set a time early in the session, but once he lost control of the car and pressed the accelerator with an unstable rear, he simply became a passenger.

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Right after the crash, Lando called himself a "f****** idiot," which captured the feelings of the McLaren driver while speaking to the media.

"It makes sense, I agree with it," he said.

"I should be fighting for pole, and on [my first] Q3 lap I shouldn't be taking any silly risks like I seemed to have done."

"I will go and review it all like I said. Not a guarantee we would have been on pole as Max did a good job, Red Bull was quick the whole qualifying."

"It wasn't a surprise, so yeah would have been nice to be in that fight, I was doing well until then and feeling comfortable but it makes sense [what I said], I shunted, you know?"

"I'm not going to be proud or happy, I let myself and the team down and the guys have big job to do now to fix it all. It's the way it is, I agree with what I said. Still, I'm looking forward to tomorrow."

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Norris felt down on himself after the race weekend in Bahrain, where he struggled to achieve a clean lap, qualified P6, and fought hard for a runner-up finish.

He said he was "happier" after qualifying in Jeddah, even thoug hit ended with a crash.

"No, I'm happier," Norris said.

"[This track] it's a very different lay out. It's a lot grippier, the grip is incredible so I'm happier."

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"We have tried to work on a few things, worked a lot on my driving, which has got nothing to do with it, it was a separate mistake. The team are doing a good job to try and understand these things."

Norris will have more work to do on Sunday to try to limit the damage from his crash, with a win seemingly impossible unless he gets lucky with a safety car.

For more F1 news, head over to F1 on SI.

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Nelson Espinal
NELSON ESPINAL

Nelson Espinal lives and breathes sports. Avidly following of everything ranging from motorsports to Mixed Martial Arts to tennis, he is connected with most of the sports world at all times. His dream of writing about sports started at 16 years of age, writing for a Lakers fans blog, and his passions for sports writing has grown since. He has his Bachelor's degree in Political Science, and a minor in writing literature from the University of California, San Diego.

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