Lando Norris chose not to backtrack after calling himself a “f****** idiot” in qualifying for the F1 Saudi Arabian Grand Prix.

The McLaren driver and the leader of the F1 drivers’ championship must start Sunday’s race from 168澳洲5最新开奖结果:10th on the grid.

An unexpected crash in qualifying, on his first flying lap of Q3 at Turn 5, caused Norris’ harsh description of himself via team radio.

Title rivals Max Verstappen and Oscar Piastri, his teammate, line up on the front row 💞in Jeddah.

Lando Norris quizzed about radio rant in Saudi Arabia

“Makes s𝐆ense,” Norris told afterwards about his “f***** idiot” outburst.

“Yeah, I mean, I agree with it.

“I should be fighting for pole and especially on a [first fly🧸ing] lap, I shouldn't be taking any silly risks like I seem 🃏to have done.

“I need to go and review it all. Not a guarantee we would have been on pole, because Max looks like he 🌌did a goo✅d job.

“Red Bull were quick the whole of qualifying, it wasn't a surprise. So, it would ꦦha☂ve been nice just to be in that fight.

“I was doing weꦐll until then and feeling comfortable.

“But I mean, it makes sense, I shunted, you know…

“I'm not g𒊎oing to be proud, I'm not going to be happy. I've let myself down, I've let ꦕthe team down and the guys have got a big job to do now to fix it all.

“It's the way it is. 🍰I agree with what I said, but I still look forward to [Sunday] and have to try and make up for today.”

Norris leads McLaren teammate Piastri by thr🦩ee points in the drivers’ standings, with Verstappen a further five behind second-place.

But Norris entered Saudi Arabia surrounded by questions about whether Piastri was tackling the🃏ir MCL39 more comfortably, after he won the Bahrain Grand Prix 𒉰a week ago.

His error in qualifying will havꦫe done nothing for his c♌onfidence in handling the McLaren, especially with Piastri nine places ahead of him on the starting grid.

His brutal description 🉐of himself is the latest in a long line of downbeat self-assessments, which Martin Brundle has previously suggested could provide ammunition to his rivals.