RUSSELL: “VERSTAPPEN SHOULD HAVE BEEN PENALIZED LIKE NORRIS IN AMERICA”
George Russell stated that Max Verstappen should have also been penalized following Lando Norris’s five-second penalty during the events of the American Grand Prix.
Russell emphasized that Formula 1 needs to address the “root cause” of ongoing track limits issues and the recent problems related to off-track overtaking. The race in Austin highlighted this problem, as multiple drivers, including Russell, received penalties for either going off-track or forcing competitors off the track.
Towards the end of the race at COTA, Lando Norris attempted to overtake Verstappen from the outside. Verstappen moved wide, forcing both drivers off the track. Since Norris technically completed his overtaking maneuver outside the track limits, he received a five-second time penalty and fell behind Verstappen after the checkered flag.
However, according to Russell, both drivers should have been penalized, thus balancing the penalties. He stated, “Looking at Lando’s penalty, I think it was correct. But I believe Max should have received a penalty for going off the track as well.”
Russell added, “To me, the root cause of the issue is having a track layout that allows you to go outside the limits. For instance, if we consider last year’s race in Austria; there were many track limit issues. This season, they added gravel there, and there were no problems.”
“IF YOU PUT GRAVEL IN TURN 12 AT COTA, LANDO CAN’T OVERTAKE OUTSIDE, AND MAX CAN’T BRAKE LATE TO GO OFF-TRACK”
Russell expressed that adding gravel to Turn 12 at COTA would prevent Lando Norris from executing an outside overtaking maneuver and would stop Max Verstappen from going off-track by braking late. He believes that it is essential to address the root cause of the problem.
Like his teammate Lewis Hamilton, Russell also believes that full-time stewards could be a solution to inconsistent or incorrect penalties. He made it clear that he wants the stewards to exercise their discretion more frequently rather than strictly applying the rules. While acknowledging the need for rules, the British driver thinks stewards should make more judicious decisions.
Russell stated, “It’s a very difficult job because you need to have a regulation in place. You need some sort of guideline, especially when you have different stewards interpreting incidents differently every week.”
He added, “Looking back, I think the penalty I received was harsh but probably correct.”
