Sainz made same start error as Norris at Monza last year

The strange scenes at the beginning of the Brazilian Grand Prix left Lando Norris and other drivers racing under the threat of a potential penalty.

Norris, who claimed pole position for the team, committed an unusual error when he pulled away from the grid when he wasn’t supposed to. Other drivers followed him, and race control later announced he was under investigation, along with fellow front row starter George Russell, and the two RB drivers who lined up immediately behind the McLaren.

The problem began when Lance Stroll spun at Subida do Lago during the formation lap. His Aston Martin became stuck in a gravel trap and it became clear the start could not go ahead until it had been recovered.

Sure enough, after Norris and the other drivers due to start from the grid returned there, race control notified them the start had been aborted. This was where things started to go awry.

Race control followed the procedure defined in the rules for an aborted start. This states: “The abort lights will be switched on, a board saying ‘aborted start’ will be displayed, all cars should return to the grid and all competitors will be informed of the likely delay using the official messaging system. The starting procedure will begin again at the 10 minute signal.”

However Norris did not wait for the signal, and pulled away immediately. Russell, the RB drivers and eventually the rest did the same, some after observing that the correct procedure had not been followed.

Norris’ mistake was easy to recognise: He reacted as if race control had ordered an extra formation lap. This is a different regulation, which states: “If the race director decides the start should be aborted the green lights will be illuminated two seconds after the abort lights are switched on, a board saying ‘extra formation lap’ will be displayed and all competitors will be informed using the official messaging system. All cars able to do so must complete a further formation lap whilst the car which developed the problem is moved into the pit lane.”

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The two rules are intended to cover different cases. Extra formation laps are typically used when a car develops a problem on the grid and needs to be pushed away. Aborted starts are more commonly seen when there is a problem elsewhere on the track, as with Stroll’s stranded Aston Martin.