F1 fans torn over Norris penalty for Verstappen Austin F1 incident

A narrow plurality of F1 fans believe Lando Norris was wrongly punished in the controversial United States Grand Prix battle with Max Verstappen. 

On Lap 52 of 56 at Austin, Norris attempted to go around the outside of title rival Max Verstappen for third place, having spent multiple laps in vain trying to pass the Red Bull, who put on a strong defensive drive.

As Norris attempted to pass the Dutchman, Verstappen ran Norris out of road, with both drivers leaving the track, but crucially, Norris re-joined ahead, but was slapped with a five-second time penalty by the stewards for "leaving the track and gaining an advantage."

It meant Norris lost his third place on the road, finishing 4.0s ahead of Verstappen, who also increased his points lead to 57. In the aftermath, RacingNews365 launched a poll to find out the opinion of F1 fans, with over 3,500 ballots cast. 

In the final results, 48.11% of respondents felt Norris should have kept his third place and was wrongly punished, with 47.13% believing the stewards had done the right thing in handing the penalty to the Briton. 

The remaining 4.76% were unsure, with just 37 votes between the two options. 

RacingNews365 also invited readers to leave their thoughts in comments, with these too being split almost 50-50 down the middle. 

"Yes. Norris at that point was faster than Verstappen but still only managed to overtake off track, and only because Verstappen intention of letting him pass him while off-track," wrote S Stivala, with that sentiment being echoed by MJVerstappen70.

They referenced previous incidents of Verstappen being penalised for overtaking off the track himself.

"How come the British seem to forget Verstappen got penalised in the US in 2017 for a similar overtaking off track manoeuvre on Räikkönen?," they said. 

"And in Bahrain 2021 when he overtook Hamilton off track he gave the position back. If Norris would have been clever he would have given the position back and try to overtake Verstappen two laps later again. McLaren should therefore also stop complaining!"

However, on the flipside, Fairracingcountsmost felt Verstappen had "no intention" of making the corner.

"Lando Norris was punished 5 seconds for an incident late in the US Grand Prix but the rules are wrong in all this," they said. 

"If a driver has not applied the brakes when he reaches the apex of the bend he clearly has no intention of making the corner on the track, such driving should be punished regardless of the outcome it is reckless driving."