Stella criticises 'inappropriate' Verstappen-Norris stewards action

McLaren team principal Andrea Stella has criticised the stewards for taking "inappropriate" action during Lando Norris' battle with Max Verstappen. 

Norris and Verstappen fought for third in the closing laps of the United States Grand Prix, with the reigning world champion having come out on top. 

However, the Dutchman came out on top after Norris received a five-second time penalty. Norris had overtaken Verstappen but did so off the circuit on the exit of Turn 12, resulting in a time penalty. 

Norris attempted to swoop around the outside of the 27-year-old, although both drivers went off the track.

Specifically, Norris was penalised for leaving the circuit and gaining an advantage, demoting him from third to fourth at the conclusion of the race at the Circuit of the Americas. 

As a result, Verstappen's lead in the F1 driver's title has increased to 57 points with five races remaining.

The Woking-based team disagreed with Norris' penalty due to Verstappen having also gone off the circuit at the same time as the Briton. Ultimately, Stella was left frustrated by the interference of the stewards. 

When asked by Sky Sports F1 for his view of Norris' and Verstappen's incident, Stella said: "My view is that the way the stewards interfered with a beautiful piece of motorsport was inappropriate, because both cars went off track, so both cars gained an advantage. 

"It's a shame, because it cost us a podium. It cost us a race where we stayed patient after we were pushed off in the first lap at the first corner, we accepted it.

"Having said that, very clearly, our position, this kind of decision by the stewards cannot be appealed for us. The chapter is now closed, and we move on to the next race."

Norris was just one-second short of keeping third, having escaped four seconds ahead of Verstappen. 

Given Norris' impressive late-race pace, some pondered why McLaren did not make its driver return P3 to Verstappen, before attempting a fresh move. 

Stella explained why, and revealed that the team was confident the move was legal.

"We double-checked that both cars went off track," said Stella. "So for us, there was no doubt that the manoeuvre was correct."