Norris apologizes to Colapinto after saying some drivers 'shouldn't be in Formula 1'

MONACO (AP) — McLaren’s Lando Norris says he has apologized to Franco Colapinto after stating that some drivers “shouldn’t be in Formula 1.”

Norris made the comments after Colapinto set off a multicar collision that ended the defending champion’s race in the Azerbaijan Grand Prix over the weekend.

“After the race, I sent Franco a message apologizing for the comments I made that I simply should not have said,” Norris backpedaled on his Instagram account on Monday. “I know better and emotions were running high but that is not an excuse, it was wrong of me. I’ve made mistakes of my own over the years and I know this is very much a part of racing and fighting on the limit.”

Colapinto braked too late at the first corner as the race restarted after a safety car period, slamming into his own Alpine teammate Pierre Gasly, whose car then pushed Norris’ into the barriers. As drivers reacted to avoid the crash, Arvid Lindblad pushed his teammate at Racing Bulls, Liam Lawson, into a spin, too.

“I just got taken out,” Norris told broadcaster Sky Sports after the race. “There’s just some drivers that shouldn’t be in Formula 1, to be honest.”

Colapinto called it a “big mistake” and said a “big sorry to both of them,” referring to Gasly and Norris.

Colapinto was given a 10-second time penalty for causing the collision. He didn’t finish the race, so that could be converted into a grid penalty for next week’s race in Malaysia, branded as the Bahrain Grand Prix.

“Me and Franco came to a good understanding, are still good friends and are both excited to get back racing this weekend,” Norris added on Instagram.

Norris is now left 116 points off standings leader Kimi Antonelli.

See AP’s full auto racing coverage here

Alpine driver Franco Colapinto of Argentina walks down pit lane following his crash during the Azerbaijan F1 Grand Prix auto race, in Baku, Azerbaijan, Saturday, Sept. 26, 2026. (AP Photo/Darko Bandic) CORRECTION: Photographer Darko Bandic instead of Pavel Bednyakov

McLaren driver Lando Norris of Britain and Alpine driver Franco Colapinto of Argentina sit in their cars after crashing during the Azerbaijan F1 Grand Prix race, in Baku, Azerbaijan, Saturday, Sept. 26, 2026. (AP Photo/Darko Bandic)

McLaren driver Lando Norris of Britain walks down pit lane following his crash during the Azerbaijan F1 Grand Prix auto race, in Baku, Azerbaijan, Saturday, Sept. 26, 2026. (AP Photo/Pavel Bednyakov)

McLaren driver Lando Norris of Britain gets out of his car after a crash during the Azerbaijan F1 Grand Prix auto race, in Baku, Azerbaijan, Saturday, Sept. 26, 2026. (AP Photo/Darko Bandic)

TOKYO (AP) — Asian shares were trading mixed Monday after a cooldown in oil prices last week helped U.S. stocks close out their first winning week in the last three.

Japan's benchmark Nikkei 225 was little changed, inching down less than 0.1% to 66,333.53.

Australia's S&P/ASX 200 added 0.3% to 8,688.60. South Korea's Kospi dipped 2.3% to 6,916.30. Hong Kong's Hang Seng rose 0.7% to 24,684.09, while the Shanghai Composite lost 1.7% to 3,820.82.

In energy trading, benchmark U.S. crude gained 1% to $93.33 a barrel. Brent crude, the international standard, rose 1.8% to $106.19 a barrel.

Last week, Brent oil had momentarily dropped to $97-levels. The price is volatile because of uncertainty about when the war with Iran will allow oil to flow freely again from the Middle East, including access to the Strait of Hormuz.

On Wall Street, the S&P 500 added 0.5% to break a three-day losing streak marked by big swings due to rising yields in the bond market. The Dow Jones Industrial Average added 478 points, or 0.9%, and the Nasdaq composite climbed 0.5%.

Weighing on Wall Street last week were rising expectations for high inflation in the U.S. That's potentially dangerous for the economy because they could encourage behavior that leads to a vicious cycle that makes the cost of living spiral even higher.

The yield on the 10-year Treasury briefly jumped to 5.22% last Friday, up from 5.18% late Thursday, and was near its highest level since 2007. High yields slow the economy by making it more expensive for everyone to borrow money, while undercutting prices for stocks and other investments.

The 10-year yield has been jumping since the start of the war with Iran, when it was at 3.97%. But yields eased later in trading on Friday as the price of oil pulled lower, and the 10-year yield fell back to 5.15%. That helped stocks on Wall Street regain strength.

All told, the S&P 500 rose 39.28 points to 7,743.41. The Dow Jones Industrial Average jumped 478.64 to 51,828.62, and the Nasdaq composite gained 129.34 to 27,068.72.

In currency trading in Monday's trading in Asia, the U.S. dollar rose to 157.76 Japanese yen from 157.19 yen. The euro cost $1.1392, little changed from $1.1393.

AP Business Writer Stan Choe contributed to this report.

Yuri Kageyama is on Threads: https://www.threads.com/@yurikageyama

Christopher Lagana works on the floor at the New York Stock Exchange in New York, Monday, Sept. 14, 2026. (AP Photo/Seth Wenig)

John O'Hara works on the floor at the New York Stock Exchange in New York, Monday, Sept. 14, 2026. (AP Photo/Seth Wenig)

Currency traders work at the foreign exchange dealing room of the Hana Bank headquarters in Seoul, South Korea, Monday, Sept. 28, 2026. (AP Photo/Ahn Young-joon)

A screen, right, shows the Korea Composite Stock Price Index (KOSPI), the foreign exchange rate between U.S. Dollar and South Korean Won, SK Hynix and Samsung Electronics Co. stock prices at the foreign exchange dealing room of the Hana Bank headquarters in Seoul, South Korea, Monday, Sept. 28, 2026. (AP Photo/Ahn Young-joon)

Currency traders work near a screen showing the Korea Composite Stock Price Index (KOSPI) at the foreign exchange dealing room of the Hana Bank headquarters in Seoul, South Korea, Monday, Sept. 28, 2026. (AP Photo/Ahn Young-joon)

Michael Pistillo works on the floor at the New York Stock Exchange in New York, Monday, Sept. 14, 2026. (AP Photo/Seth Wenig)