Lando Norris has described F1’s track limit violation system as “one of the silliest rules” in the sport. The Brit picked up three strikes early on during Sunday’s United States Grand Prix, meaning he was unable to attack Charles Leclerc at will without risking a time penalty.
Under the current sporting regulations, drivers are shown the black-and-white flag after three track limit violations, defined simply as going all four wheels outside of the white lines at the edge of the circuit. Then, they receive a five-second time penalty for a fourth offence, and further penalties for any flouting the boundaries more times beyond then.
Norris found himself on the wrong side of the track limit count early in Sunday’s race, and his third and final violation came after he ran wide while battling Leclerc for second place. This forced him to be extra careful when he encountered the Monegasque racer later in the Grand Prix.
“I mean, the places which were easy to go off were Turn Nine over the crest of the hill, and then the last two corners,” Norris explained after the chequered flag. “I think I was on three strikes by like lap 10.
“So I didn’t put myself in the best position. But then one of my strikes was because I was racing. You know, I think that’s one of the silliest rules that we have – we’re invited to try and race, but if you race too much, you get a penalty for it.
“And I got a track limits [strike] for trying to go around the outside and losing time to Charles. So, doesn’t really make much sense in terms of going racing. But it definitely made my life that little bit trickier, especially Turn 19, with the wind, like Max said, it was pretty inconsistent.
“It’s difficult to just be always on the limit and not make mistakes, which I obviously made a couple too many of, too early on. But yeah, a little bit more cautious at the end because I knew I couldn’t afford a penalty. But I took the risks I needed to.”
Norris ultimately got the better of Leclerc in the fight for second place but couldn’t muster a challenge to race leader Max Verstappen. However, with team-mate Oscar Piastri down in fifth place, Sunday’s United States GP represented a significant gain for the young Brit.
He now heads to Mexico City just 14 points behind Piastri at the top of the Drivers’ Championship standings, having out-scored his team-mate in each of the last four race weekends. Meanwhile, Verstappen is now only 40 points behind the lead McLaren driver after his third win in four races.
