“Who Is That?”: Lando Norris Covers Up Embarrassing Mistake During Bahrain Race Review With Piastri and Russell

It was a thrilling Bahrain GP. The Sakhir track, which offers plenty of racing and overtaking opportunities, rarely disappoints—and watching the 2025 race, it was evident why. There was action all across the grid: some moments were memorable, others, rather embarrassing.

There was little surprise in watching Oscar Piastri take the Grand Prix win, with the McLaren driver having a solid, incident-free evening. His teammate, Lando Norris, however, had to deal with a rollercoaster of emotions.

His race started off well, with quite a few places made up in the opening laps. A 1-2 finish for McLaren appeared to be well in sight. But never count your chickens before they’ve hatched, because very soon, Norris got handed a five-second penalty for his false start on the first lap, which derailed his chances of getting the win.

Thereon, for the majority of the outing, Norris found himself chasing George Russell in P2 while fending off Charles Leclerc behind him. During a battle with Leclerc, however, the Bristol-born driver made an uncharacteristic mistake—one he couldn’t even bring himself to watch after the race, clearly frustrated by what had unfolded.

In the cooldown room, Norris, who finished P3 behind Piastri and Russell, was looking at a replay of himself locking up and going off the track at turn 1 while fighting with Leclerc. “Who is that?” the Briton asked, making a feeble attempt at covering up the error.

Being rather hard on himself, Norris also said, “What a muppet,” belittling himself for the mistake that lost him a considerable amount of time.

Norris was frustrated, as he should be. Things were already tough for him after securing just a P6 starting position for the race. On top of that, multiple incidents—including a mid-race safety car—only made matters more complicated. “Nice easy race. Pretty calm and all under control!” the 25-year-old remarked in the cool-down room, dripping with sarcasm.

A repeat of this race in the remaining 20 rounds won’t be ideal for Norris or his championship hopes. But he can take solace in the fact that he fought hard today. Leclerc put up an incredible fight and tussled with Norris for several laps to retain the final podium place towards the end. Norris, however, got the better of him for good.

The Briton was even within DRS range of Russell ahead, and finished the Bahrain GP right on his tail. A few more laps, and Norris could have snatched second place away from his compatriot.

P3, however, kept him atop the championship standings for now. Norris is currently at 77 points, three ahead of Piastri, who is well and truly after the crown and seems to be getting the measure of his teammate.