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Why Lando Norris was punished but Max Verstappen was not

British driver called stewards’ decision a ‘momentum killer’ in his bid to win a maiden world crown

A tempestuous battle between title contenders Max Verstappen and Lando Norris was just one of many talking points from a thrilling and controversial United States Grand Prix.
The decision-making and application of penalties by the FIA stewards on Sunday was roundly criticised (see below) as confusing and inconsistent, with several similar incidents seeing varying penalties or none at all.
Norris, who trailed Verstappen by 54 points heading into the race in Austin, overtook the Dutchman off track and was given a five-second penalty for doing so. That meant the McLaren driver lost third place and ceded more ground to his championship rival. Verstappen defended superbly for several laps but pushed the limits as far as he could on lap 52, as is often the case.
Norris himself was frustrated by the penalty whilst Mercedes team principal Toto Wolff went as far as to level accusations of bias against the FIA stewards. McLaren’s chief Andrea Stella said Norris’s penalty was “inappropriate”.
Even in the most generous interpretation of events on Sunday, what happened is plainly a mess that needs sorting.  We break down exactly what happened in each of the main incidents and analyse the outcomes.
IT’S LIGHTS OUT, AND AWAY WE GO! 🔴🔴🔴🔴🔴Charles Leclerc takes the lead 🔥 pic.twitter.com/OxAXuNxZwA
Norris gets a good start off the line but leaves space for Verstappen, who also launches well, at the inside of turn one. The Red Bull driver seizes this opportunity and takes the lead, but runs Norris off the track on the outside. Norris drops down to fourth and Verstappen second, with the Ferrari of Charles Leclerc taking the lead.
Outcome: Verstappen overtakes Norris, but receives no penalty and the incident is not even noted
Our verdict: In the first instance Norris invited Verstappen up the inside which was a mistake, but that was not an issue for the stewards. In allowing it, though, Norris also invited Verstappen to push him off the track. Verstappen knew what he was doing here but a penalty here would have been harsh given that it was the first lap, he had cold tyres and a full tank of fuel. That said, the FIA leniency on first-lap incidents must be codified more clearly.
A little later on lap one, the second Ferrari of Carlos Sainz has closed up onto the back of Verstappen in second as they approach the hairpin at turn 12. Verstappen keeps the racing line on the outside as Sainz lunges up the inside and gets ahead at the apex.
The Ferrari, though, carries too much speed through the corner and pushes Verstappen off on the outside. Both cars run off track but Verstappen does so more extremely and retakes – or retains – second position well off the track with a wider line. Sainz rejoins the track sooner and in a far more normal racing line.
Outcome: Verstappen retains his position but is not investigated for leaving the track and gaining an advantage and this looks similar – though not identical – to the later incident between Norris and Verstappen in that Verstappen was forced off by an understeering Sainz, but then retook the position off the track.
Our verdict: This is where the inconsistency starts to appear when looking at later events. The slight difference between this and the later incident is that Sainz was the overtaking driver and Verstappen was defending. Sainz, perhaps, did not have the move done. Verstappen was always going to do what he did but a penalty for this would have been harsh given that he was forced off.
The moment that earnt George a five-second time penalty for forcing Valtteri off the track ⚠️ pic.twitter.com/E5BsyNvww3
The Mercedes driver has the inside line at the hairpin and Bottas tries to keep it going around the outside of Russell, which just about keeps him ahead at the apex. By the corner exit Russell appears ahead with Bottas on the outside as Bottas runs off track trying to stay on the outside.
Outcome: Russell is awarded a five-second penalty for forcing another driver off the track. The stewards noted in their verdict that the Driving Standards Guidelines say that when overtaking on the inside, a driver must leave a fair and acceptable width, but that Russell did not do that.
Our verdict: This appears innocuous enough but highlights the problem the stewards face, in that you are dealing with so many potential variables and such small margins. Bottas could have backed off as he exited the corner and was not ‘forced’ off the track as such. Also, at what point does the overtaking car need to leave enough space? At the time Russell ‘forced’ Bottas off track he was ahead and that was on exit. Still, within the guidelines a penalty was probably just about correct.
The CONTROVERSAL moment Lando got ahead of Max for P3 ⚔️ pic.twitter.com/vtlUdJdyxu
This was the most controversial and consequential of the incidents at turn 12. Heading into the braking zone, Verstappen claims the inside line and forces Norris to go on the outside. The cars are side-by-side approaching the apex but Verstappen takes the more direct racing line and forces Norris wide while also running off track himself. Norris keeps his foot down off track and takes the position, keeping it when rejoining the circuit.
Outcome: Norris gets a five-second penalty for leaving the track and gaining a lasting advantage.
Our verdict: By the letter of the racing guidelines this penalty was fair as Norris did leave the track and gain an advantage. However, he did not leave the track by his own choice but was forced off by Verstappen and had nowhere else to go.
Norris (and McLaren) could have been a little smarter. Firstly, he should expect Verstappen to push things to the limit. By overtaking off track he invited the FIA to give him a penalty. Had Norris not done so they may have investigated Verstappen for forcing him off track and he would also likely have another opportunity to take the position the very next lap.
McLaren’s point was that Verstappen also left the track and gained an advantage by doing so (ie. forcing Norris wide). Verstappen, however, ended up losing the position so Norris’s advantage was decisive.
Still, Norris had no choice but to run off the track because of the aggressive way Verstappen positioned his car.  As per the racing guidelines, Norris was ahead as they entered the corner but was not at the apex, which is what counted against him in this judgement as he “lost the right” to the corner.
Of course, Verstappen was never going to give Norris the space he needed to drive around the outside. It seems he either never intended to give the McLaren even a sniff, by easing off the brakes and/or leaving his steering slightly open. Or he simply understeered through the corner. This sets a slightly worrying precedent for those being overtaken on the outside, especially on tracks with enormous hard run-off areas. McLaren are right to be upset, especially given that in Budapest earlier this year Verstappen overtook Norris off the track at turn one and was not required to give the place back. 
‘They can’t make their minds up’Lando Norris: “They obviously can’t make their minds up for a few laps, so it’s obviously not an easy decision otherwise it would have come a bit sooner. I tried. He also went off the track. If he goes off the track, clearly he’s gone in way too hard and also gained an advantage by doing what he did. But I don’t make the rules, so…”
‘McLaren complain about a lot’Max Verstappen: “It’s just how it is, it’s quite clear in the ruling that you can’t overtake outside the white line. There’s not much more to say. They [McLaren] complain about a lot lately, anyway.”
‘Beautiful piece of motorsport’Andrea Stella, McLaren team principal: “The way the stewards interfered with a beautiful piece of motorsport was inappropriate because both cars went off track. Both cars gained an advantage. It’s a shame because it cost us a podium, it was a race where we stayed patient after we were pushed off at the first lap and we accepted it.”
‘Biased decision-making’Toto Wolff expressed his disbelief at the perceived inconsistency in decisions in a post-race radio message to Russell.  “He [Verstappen] didn’t get a penalty and at the end Lando got a penalty for being forced off and overtaking on the outside. I guess it’s a bit biased decision-making but…”
After the race Wolff was stronger in his comments, suggesting there was something unusual at play with the stewards.  “Yesterday [in the sprint race] we saw a few of those incidents which were exactly the same which weren’t penalised. Receiving that penalty is completely odd and bizarre. I think we know why but you can’t say that on television.”
‘Verstappen outbraked himself’Jenson Button criticised the racing guidelines which allowed Verstappen to keep the position and force Norris off track.
“He is ahead of the apex because he outbraked himself. If he knows he has to have his nose in front at the apex he just lifts off and lets the car fly into the corner. He’s in front but he doesn’t have to make the corner.”
‘The rules are very, very clear’Red Bull’s Christian Horner: “The rules are very, very clear. Max was straight on the radio, the race director was pretty clear. [Norris was] Clearly off the circuit.”
“The rules are the rules, the drivers know that. Max was acutely aware that as soon as Lando went over the white line off track and overtook, that is illegal. I think there were some track limits as well, there was a whole bunch of things going on.”
I’m not convinced the Stewarding was consistent in that race. But Lando went deep to pass and did so off track. That said, Max did not give him room on the exit and barged him off the track in turn 1 lap 1. The rules need to be better #f1
The rule around forcing another car off the track will be a big talking point when we get to Mexico!If there was gravel there, the driver on the outside wouldn’t take as much of a risk to try and hang on…. But equally the driver on the inside can’t just force their rival off
Lando Norris accused Formula One’s stewards of rushing their controversial decision to penalise him in his duel with Max Verstappen – a verdict the British driver called a “momentum killer” in his bid to win a maiden world crown.
Norris arrived for the US Grand Prix 52 points behind Verstappen, but he will depart Texas 57 adrift of his rival with only 146 points available over the concluding five rounds.
Asked if he understood the stewards’ verdict, Norris replied: “No, not really. The point where it is incorrect is what Max did, which was also to defend his position by going off the track and keeping the position.
“He went off the track because he over-defended and he made a mistake but he has gained from that. I had to go off to avoid him. With Max, you’ve got to commit, you cannot go half-hearted and people don’t understand that kind of thing.
“It is impossible to know if I could have stayed on the track [without that]. Therefore, you cannot steward that kind of thing.
“It is just a rushed decision and they don’t hear or understand our points which they should do after the race. They just want to make a decision at the time.
“And you can’t appeal this kind of penalty, which is again a silly thing because they are just guessing and I don’t think that is how stewarding should be done.”
Responding to Norris’s comments, Verstappen said: “It is quite clear, you cannot overtake outside the white lines. It happened to me in 2017 at this race, and I was penalised, and I lost my podium.”
Norris said Verstappen forced him off the road at the opening corner, but the stewards took no action.
“If I defended better in Turn One and wasn’t driving like a muppet, then I should have led after Turn One, and we wouldn’t be having this conversation in the first place,” he said.
“It is a momentum killer [in the championship]. The one guy I need to beat was Max and that was the guy I didn’t beat today. It wasn’t good enough. We have work to do and I have work to do on myself.”

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