Sergio Perez (MEX) Red Bull Racing RB19. 24.09.2023. Formula 1 World Championship, Rd 17, Japanese Grand Prix, Suzuka, Japan, Race Day.
Lando Norris says he was “shouting in my helmet” when Sergio Perez “almost crashed” into him during Sunday’s Japanese Grand Prix.
Perez, who had started fifth, encountered two early trips to the pits for a change of front wing, having made contact with Lewis Hamilton at the start and then Kevin Magnussen at the Turn 11 hairpin.
When a Virtual Safety Car was deployed to clear the ensuing debris on the track, Norris came across Perez, now a lap down, dawdling slowly on the racing line.
Norris was unsure whether he could overtake the Red Bull, adding that the two almost collided upon the return to green flag conditions as he strived to overtake.
The Briton asserts that he lost 10s from the incident, which dropped him behind team-mate Oscar Piastri, who had stopped under the VSC, and put the Ferraris on his tail.
Asked to reflect on the time squandered behind Perez, Norris said: “I have no idea. I don’t know what… he must have had a problem, right? But the thing is you can’t overtake under the VSC unless it’s obvious the guy has a problem and I don’t know what was going on, I didn’t know if he had a problem, whether he was just backing me up.
“I didn’t know and I couldn’t take the risk of just overtaking him. He was going so slowly and then when we get the flashing dash for the VSC ending, he went into first gear and then I was on the outside of him because he was going so slowly, and then he almost crashed into me.
“So I honestly have no idea. I was shouting in my helmet. I was swearing quite a bit, but just got… I was so confused, I didn’t know what I could do.
“I’m losing time to Max [Verstappen]. The Ferrari guys were, I think, 1.4 seconds behind me after being I think 12s or 13s, so I lost 10 seconds. And I didn’t know what I could do at the time.”
2nd place Lando Norris (GBR) McLaren. 24.09.2023. Formula 1 World Championship, Rd 17, Japanese Grand Prix, Suzuka, Japan, Race Day.
Although he would later get back past Piastri via a team order from McLaren, Norris suggests that he will seek clarity from the FIA to avoid a repeat scenario occurring.
Norris also criticised Perez’s actions, declaring that he should have made it clearer if he was experiencing an issue.
“If he [Perez] has a problem, he should pull over and make it obvious that he has a problem,” continued Norris, who eventually came home second for McLaren. “So he didn’t and therefore I couldn’t take the risk of passing under a VSC so no idea.
“I don’t think it would have changed the world, just made me stress for a little bit more. But it would have been maybe just a bit better to put Max under a little bit of pressure at least, after that. I don’t think we would have been quite as far behind.
“So yeah, a frustrating time, maybe I’ll ask next time what you’re allowed to do but I think I did the right thing so all okay.”
Keyword: Norris ‘shouting’ in helmet when Perez ‘almost crashed’ into him