Lando Norris lauded as the "smartest guy on the grid" by George Russell

George Russell lauded Lando Norris as the "smartest guy on the grid" after the Brazilian Grand Prix Sprint, joking that he made a Mario Kart-type move on Oscar Piastri during the race. On Lap 6, Norris went over the kerb at Turn 3, splashing water onto the track, which caused Piastri to lose traction and crash at the same corner moments later.

Lap 6 of the Brazilian GP Sprint saw a bizarre sequence of incidents, almost simultaneously, as championship contender Oscar Piastri lost control of his car around Turn 3 and crashed into the barriers. Moments later, Nico Hulkenberg and Franco Colapinto made the same mistake and collided with the barrier on the outside as well.

It was soon revealed that Lando Norris had gone a little wide and onto the kerb in Turn 3 on Lap 6 and splashed some water onto the track in doing so. This small puddle caught out three drivers, with Piastri and Colapinto suffering terminal damage.

During the post-sprint press conference on Saturday, George Russell made a hilarious joke about the incident, claiming that Norris was the "smartest guy on the grid" for leaving a Mario Kart-type obstacle on the track for his championship rival.

"A little bit like Mario Kart when you throw the banana out behind. Smartest guy on the grid, this guy!" said Russell.

Piastri's DNF meant that Russell was able to join Norris and his teammate Kimi Antonelli on the podium for the sprint. Norris has extended his lead over Piastri to nine points in the drivers' standings. Max Verstappen finished the race in fourth and has moved 39 points behind Norris in the standings.

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Lando Norris reflects on his Turn 3 moment that caused mayhem during Brazilian GP Sprint

Lando Norris after the Brazilian GP Sprint - Source: Getty

Lando Norris explained that he ran a little wider than he would have liked at Turn 3 on Lap 6 of the Brazilian GP Sprint, which led him onto the kerb. The Briton inadvertently created a track hazard for three drivers behind him as he splashed some water onto the racing line.

Speaking in the post-sprint press conference, Norris explained that he would ideally have liked to avoid the kerb at Turn 3 altogether, given the slippery conditions.

"Yeah, I mean, it’s a kerb you always use in qualifying. We use it a lot. Obviously when it’s wet conditions like this, you kinda want to stay off all the kerbs. So I ran a little bit wide and I saw the water come onto the track. But, yeah, that was it," said Norris, via FIA.

Second-placed Kimi Antonelli also revealed that he spotted the exact moment that Norris ran wide and threw up some water onto the track, as the Italian rookie was running very close to the championship leader. He also shared that the water even went onto his visor, explaining how big a puddle was on the kerb at Turn 3.

Edited by Hitesh Nigam