Williams team boss James Vowles expressed his concerns about Formula 1 rules after the controversial incident between them. Max Verstappen and Lando Norris Turn 12 of Lap 52 United States Grand PrixHe saw Norris give a 5-second penalty. Vowles questioned the clarity of the current rules and stressed the need for greater consistency in enforcement, highlighting uncertainty about how similar incidents will be handled in the future.

Norris was penalized for passing Verstappen while going outside the track limits. The incident occurred when he tried to pass Verstappen using the outside line from the left wing. However, both cars entered the escape area. Despite the move allowing Norris to cross the finish line in third place, a penalty for a track limit violation relegated him to fourth place, clawing back his position gain.

The Dutch football player did not receive a penalty despite allegedly crossing the white line during a close encounter. The FIA ​​has drawn criticism from McLaren and many others for its inconsistent decisions, with many other drivers involved in similar incidents receiving no penalties.

Meanwhile, Verstappen’s exploits of gray areas in the Formula 1 rule book have come to light, especially after becoming a seven-time world champion. Lewis Hamilton He said he fell victim to this situation in 2021, when the rivalry between Verstappen and the Mercedes driver peaked in the premier class. Speaking about the same year, Vowles told Sky Germany: GPfans.com:

“As we look at the 2021 season, we see something similar happening with Max. Max is always testing the boundaries of the rules, but he’s still testing the boundaries. I think the bigger debate for me is: Do we want that in our sport, or do we want that?” Do we want it to be a little more dampened like before?

“The truth is that Max went off the track and braked late to keep his car in front, but overtaking maneuvers like this have been done that way for a while, especially by him. In this particular case I think the stewards did that.” That’s the right decision, in my opinion, but the bigger question we need to ask ourselves is: Do we want racing to be like this in the future?”

He added:

“It’s like pushing someone off the track and then not being able to turn, that’s not the right way. That’s my opinion, you can’t be next to the car, you can be in front when braking and then both happen.” Vehicles are expanding. “We don’t want to see this kind of racing.”

When asked if he believed no one should be punished, Vowles said:

“Yes, but those are the rules now. The question is how we do it in the future.”

“It’s not as clear as it should be, so it needs to be changed in the future.”