Martin Brundle reveals race control’s worrying stance on Lando Norris’ ‘unconscionable’ decision

The gap to Max Verstappen was 52 points before the race weekend and after a Sprint race win and a podium in Sunday’s Grand Prix, that gap was widened by a further five points.

However, that doesn’t tell the whole story, with Norris barely clinging to a podium finish in the Sprint race before being penalized in his battle with Verstappen in the closing stages of the race.

Norris was given a five-second penalty for going off track and gaining the lead by overtaking Verstappen outside the track boundaries.

READ MORE: McLaren driver Lando Norris’ life outside F1, from parents to celebration

Although Martin Brundle was frustrated by how Norris lost the lead to begin with, the decision to penalize Norris and not Verstappen in this case has created much debate.

Brundle was writing in his column for Sky Sports and shared his thoughts on a rule the stewards implemented that he wasn’t sure he agreed with.

Not only that, Brundle said at the time that there was no universal agreement within the breed control about the extent of the penalty Norris received in this case.

Martin Brundle calls double jeopardy rule ‘unthinkable’ after Lando Norris’ US GP ban

Speaking about Norris and Verstappen’s battle, Brundle said: “If Russell was penalized for taking out Valtteri Bottas, shouldn’t Verstappen have been penalized for taking out Norris at the same corner?

“And here’s another question, given that Norris had passed Verstappen on the outside before Turn 12, when Verstappen sailed back on the inside, who was actually making the pass at the apex from the corner, Verstappen or Norris?

READ MORE: Everything you need to know about the McLaren F1 Team, from the team principal to the engine

“It’s even more complicated than that. Norris running out was his fourth indiscretion at the edge of the track, which means an automatic five-second penalty.

“It seems inconceivable to me that if a driver is forced wide, that counts as hitting the limit of the track, but I’m sure it does.

“But Norris was not given an extra five second penalty for the track limits because that would have been considered double jeopardy with his penalty for going off track, which he certainly did.

“This was not a universally accepted decision in race control.”

Why Lando Norris apologized to his fans after the US Grand Prix

Norris would have hoped that McLaren would be able to maintain their lead over the rest of the field during the autumn break, but that no longer appears to be the case.

Ferrari may have brought some unannounced upgrades to Austin that have suddenly put them at the front of the pack.

Charles Leclerc and Carlos Sainz were a long way off while Norris and Verstappen battled it out behind them, which could provide another interesting twist to the Constructors’ Championship.

Norris apologized to his fans after the US Grand Prix and may be left regretting that he didn’t immediately hand the place back to Verstappen to try and overtake him legitimately at the checkered flag.

Time is running out for the young Briton and he may have to admit sooner rather than later that helping McLaren win their first championship this century is now a more realistic goal.

Related Posts