Lando Norris started from pole position, but was only fourth in the Formula 1 American Grand Prix. The Briton from McLaren had a chance to finish ahead of his championship rival, Max Verstappen, if not in first place, but he could not overtake Red Bull with a regular overtaking.


At the start of the race, Norris drove around Verstappen, who was also leaving the lines, outside the track. Norris gained an unjustified advantage by taking over the third place, because Verstappen was first at the peak of the corner, i.e. the corner belonged to the Dutchman, according to the stewards. Ten seconds were normally given for this, but as they said, the current case was different in that Verstappen himself drove off the track. However, an unfair advantage is an unfair advantage, so Norris received a high five and fell back behind the defending champion in Austin.

Of course, the British were not happy about this. “He drove off the track because he overprotected himself. He made a mistake, but he won with it. I also had to go outside to avoid it,” Norris explained to the press after waving the situation off. “It’s impossible to say whether I would have stayed on the field anyway, so it’s impossible to judge such a thing. A hasty decision was made, they didn’t even listen to our thoughts, which should have been done after the competition. They just wanted to make a quick decision,” he said of the stewards.