JUST IN: Lando Norris Blasts ‘Silly’ FIA Track Rule After Narrow Avoidance of Penalty at US Grand Prix… Read more
Lando Norris Blasts ‘Silly’ FIA Track Limit Rules After Narrow Avoidance of Penalty at US Grand Prix
By Hugo Harvey | October 21, 2025 | Austin, Texas
Lando Norris has expressed frustration at what he described as one of Formula 1’s “silliest rules” after narrowly avoiding a penalty during Sunday’s United States Grand Prix at the Circuit of the Americas. The McLaren driver, who finished second behind Max Verstappen, was handed a black-and-white flag midway through the race for exceeding track limits three times, forcing him to complete the final 30 laps with extreme caution.
Under current FIA regulations, four track limits violations in a race result in an automatic five-second time penalty. Norris, aware of the looming punishment, had to walk a tightrope between maintaining his pace and avoiding further breaches. Although he managed to keep his car on track and secure P2, the Briton later vented his frustration at the rule, arguing that it stifles racing and punishes drivers for competitive overtaking attempts.
“I think it’s one of the silliest rules we have,” Norris said after the race. “We’re encouraged to race hard and go wheel-to-wheel, but if you race too much or take the outside line trying to pass someone, you risk getting a penalty. It doesn’t make much sense.”
Norris revealed that one of his warnings came from a move while battling Charles Leclerc, a manoeuvre that cost him time rather than providing any advantage. “I got one of my strikes for trying to go around the outside and actually losing time to Charles,” he explained. “So how does that count as gaining an advantage? It definitely made things trickier for the rest of the race.”
The McLaren driver admitted that he reached his third warning as early as lap ten, leaving him under pressure for the remaining 40-plus laps. “By lap 10, I was already on three strikes,” he said. “That wasn’t ideal, especially with how tricky turn nine and the last two corners were. The wind made the car unstable, so you were constantly on the edge of going off. From that point on, I had to be extra careful not to cross the white lines again.”
Despite his cautious driving, Norris was able to maintain second position, though he conceded he had little chance of challenging Verstappen for the win. “If I had been fighting Max up front, it would’ve been tough because you can’t push fully while worrying about track limits,” he admitted. “But I took the risks I needed to and managed to bring it home safely.”
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Norris Closes the Gap in the Title Race
Norris’ runner-up finish in Austin proved crucial in the Drivers’ Championship battle. With team-mate Oscar Piastri finishing outside the top four, Norris has reduced the deficit to the Australian to just 14 points with five rounds remaining in the 2025 Formula 1 season.
However, the weekend also underscored the growing threat posed by Max Verstappen, who completed a perfect weekend by winning both the sprint and the main race, earning the maximum 33 points. The Red Bull driver’s resurgence has tightened the title picture considerably — he now sits 26 points behind Norris and 40 points behind Piastri, reigniting memories of his dominant 2023 form.
Verstappen’s recent run has been exceptional, winning three of the last five Grands Prix and finishing second in the other two. In each of those races, he finished ahead of Norris, and only once was he beaten by Piastri. His current momentum suggests that the Dutchman could yet mount a late-season surge for a fifth world title.
McLaren, meanwhile, faces the challenge of keeping both drivers focused amid increasing pressure. The team is hunting its first Drivers’ Championship since Lewis Hamilton’s 2008 triumph, and while Norris and Piastri remain in control of the standings, Verstappen’s charge has made the final stretch of the season far from predictable.
As the paddock prepares for the next round, Norris’s criticism of the FIA’s track limits policy is likely to echo through the sport. Many drivers have voiced similar complaints about the strict policing of white lines, arguing that the enforcement often detracts from racing excitement. For Norris, the incident at Austin served as another reminder of how fine the margins are in modern Formula 1 — one wheel’s width can be the difference between podium glory and a costly penalty.
With the championship finely poised, the coming rounds promise an electrifying showdown between Norris, Piastri, and Verstappen — and perhaps further debate over where the FIA should draw the line, quite literally, on racing freedom.
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