Lando Norris faced a challenging start at the US Grand Prix, where his pole position quickly turned into a struggle for control. While battling with Max Verstappen at Turn 1, Norris lost his position as Charles Leclerc capitalized on his poor start and surged ahead to take the lead. During the intense US GP, Lando Norris and Max Verstappen battled fiercely on lap 52.

After starting from pole, Norris dropped to fourth and attempted to overtake the Dutchman. Both went off-track, but stewards penalized Norris with five seconds for gaining an advantage by leaving the track. Although Norris crossed the line in third, the penalty dropped him to fourth, giving Verstappen a podium finish.

The Briton later defended himself, claiming that he felt justified in not returning the place since he believed he had maintained his position ahead of the Dutchman. I mean clearly I didn’t give the position back because we thought we were in the right – clearly we weren’t, I still think we were, considering Max went off the track – normally if you defend your position and you go off the track, you have to give the position up. Lando Norris told Formula 1He emphasized that both of them did what was necessary during the race.

The result put the three-time world champion 57 points ahead of Norris. He will need to do better in the next five races if he hopes to clinch his maiden F1 title. I think I did the correct thing, but I don’t make the rules.

Max drove well, it was a fun race between us, a good battle. He defended well, he did everything he had to do. Lando Norris addedRELATED“What a joke!

” – Fans furious over Lando Norris’ five-second penalty for move on Max Verstappen at US GPLando Norris slams his own performance at the COTAThe race in Austin was particularly an important one for the McLaren and Lando Norris. They recently snatched the lead in the constructors’ standings from Red Bull and currently sit 40 points ahead. However, both Norris and Oscar Piastri failed to capitalize at the US GP.

Lando Norris (via IMAGO)The Briton felt he didn’t drive as well as he could have, which impacted his result. He described the day as challenging, mentioning how tough it was to manage the car and tires during the race. The five-second penalty was also an added challenge that cost him a podium.

I didn’t have enough today, I didn’t drive particularly well. It was a tough challenge out there with the tyres and the car, it was a difficult day. Lando Norris explainedRELATEDToto Wolff brands Lando Norris’ US GP penalty as a ‘biased decision’Norris stated that the team doesn’t want to dwell on setbacks and is focused on the upcoming races.

With the season moving to Mexico for the second race of the tripleheader, he emphasized the importance of looking ahead.