2 weeks Ago By Charlie Gordon
The controversial incident between Max Verstappen and Lando Norris at Circuit of the Americas is reportedly set to be discussed by F1 stars at the Mexican Grand Prix drivers' briefing. Norris passed Verstappen in the latter stages of last weekend's race in Austin but was pushed wide by the Dutchman on the exit of Turn 12, meaning he kept his position by running off the track. The FIA handed Norris a five-second penalty which dropped him back below Verstappen, who went unpunished.
The racing guidelines dictate that the defending car, which in this case was Verstappen, does not have to leave the attacker racing room. McLaren have since seen their penalty appeal rejected by the FIA. "It's how the rules are written," Verstappen, who sits 57 points ahead of Norris in the Drivers' Championship, told Sky Sports .
"I don't make the rules, first of all. I just follow the rules, as much as I can. I just implement the rules and play with them.
" With Motorsport.com reporting that the incident is set to be discussed in Mexico, multiple stars have aired concerns about the practice of drivers darting up the inside to make sure they are ahead at the apex, regardless of whether or not they can make the corner. As the man directly affected, Norris was understandably part of the group calling for the rules to be tweaked.
"I think things just need to be clear for the future on what's allowed and what's not," said the 24-year-old. "I think the fact of getting off your brakes to achieve just the ruling of being ahead at apex no matter how wide you run on the exit is incorrect, and I don't think that's how racing should be. I think there needs to be some tweaks.
" Mercedes star Lewis Hamilton , who suffered similar incidents during his 2021 world title battle with Verstappen, agrees that the rules need to be cleared up. "It's always been a grey area," he explained. "They probably need to make some adjustments.
I experienced it many times with Max. You shouldn't be able to just launch the car up the inside and then go off and still hold the position." His Mercedes team-mate, George Russell , also sympathised with Norris.
"In my view, [Verstappen] should have been penalised," said the Brit. "If they [the FIA] say: 'Based on our regulations, he should not have been penalised', then he is exploiting a loophole.".
