Lando Norris disagrees with F1 stewards’ verdict on Charles Leclerc penalty at Brazil GP

Lando Norris has questioned the Formula 1 stewards’ decision to penalise Charles Leclerc for a late incident with Liam Lawson at the Sao Paulo Grand Prix. 

Ferrari driver Leclerc finished seventh on the road at Interlagos but was handed a five-second post-race time penalty for colliding with Lawson’s Racing Bulls as the pair battled for position in the closing laps. 

The penalty dropped Leclerc behind Lawson to eighth and restored their original order, with the stewards deeming that the contact enabled the Monegasque to make an unfair overtake on Lawson. 

But Norris, who won the race for McLaren with an imperious drive in treacherous conditions, disagreed with the outcome. 

Discussing the incident during a Twitch stream with his friend and former racing driver Max Fewtrell, Norris asked: “How did Leclerc get a five-second penalty?” 

Fewtrell replied: “I’d say that incident was the absolute limit of a love tap that you can give in racing.

Norris went on to add: “Yeah, but that’s just racing, no?”

To which, Fewtrell responded: “That’s proper racing, and I think it’s the limit. I think anymore of a nudge and he’d lose more time and it’s not fair. That was a perfectly-timed nudge.”

Norris then concluded: “I agree, I agree. I thought it was a perfectly placed nudge.”

Why the stewards punished Leclerc 

“While the contact was minor and Lawson was able to maintain the [position] thereafter, Lawson claimed that the contact damaged the rear left rim of his car, and also enabled Leclerc to get closer to him on track and then eventually overtake him five corners later," the stewards' verdict read.

“Furthermore, under the driving standard guidelines, Lawson had the right to the corner and it was for Leclerc to take the necessary steps to avoid a collision.

“Leclerc that it was a minor contact with no obvious sporting consequence.

“While we acknowledge that the contact was minor, having examined the fight on track between the two cars, we conclude that Leclerc was able to get closer to and thereafter overtake Lawson because of the contact.

“The contact clearly disrupted Lawson and allowed Leclerc to pull up alongside when it was further away before the contact. This was an obvious sporting consequence.

“In mitigation, the wet conditions coupled with the nature of the contact (ie minor) was taken into account in imposing a five-second time penalty as opposed to a 10-second time penalty.”