5-second penalty for Lando Norris (and not 10) in F1 USA GP: Stewards’ explanation. Why Lando Norris got a five-second penalty in the United States GP.

Podium slipped away for the McLaren driver
“He overtook me off the track. He has to give me the position back.” Max Verstappen, speaking calmly over the radio, had no doubt that he had been overtaken irregularly by Lando Norris in the 2024 Formula 1 United States Grand Prix at the Circuit of the Americas in Texas. The Dutch driver managed to hold off a faster McLaren for many laps, and in the end, Lando Norris passed him on the outside at Turn 12, going off the track.

Max Verstappen also went beyond the track limits at that point during Lando Norris’ overtaking move, but the 5-second penalty for the McLaren driver was still imposed, and the Stewards’ document is clear. The key factor was that Max Verstappen reached the apex ahead of Lando Norris.

Here’s the Stewards’ explanation: “Car #4 overtook on the outside but was not fully alongside car #1 at the apex, and therefore lost the ‘right of way’ in the corner. Since car #4 rejoined the track ahead of car #1, it resulted in a situation where leaving the track provided an advantage. A 5-second penalty was given instead of 10 because, being on the outside, car #4 had no room to act differently, as car #1 was very close and also exceeded the track limits. For all these reasons, this off-track moment by Norris is not counted towards the ‘strikes’ that lead to a penalty for failing to respect track limits.”