The U.S. Grand Prix race weekend in Austin in October was chock full of twists and turns, most notably Charles Leclerc’s third victory of the Formula 1 season and Lando Norris’ overtake of Max Verstappen outside of the racing boundaries. The move appeared to put Norris in third place, but it ultimately resulted in a five-second penalty that cost the McLaren driver a place on the podium, as he finished fourth, just behind his Red Bull rival Verstappen.
On the track, the high-stakes move took place during lap 52 at turn 12, widely regarded as the pivotal stretch of Austin’s Circuit of the Americas. The turn remains the focus of F1’s efforts to fine-tune the track’s capacity for drama, with officials shortening the DRS (drag reduction system) zone of the straightaway leading into the turn by 95 meters.
