F1 set for revised racing guidelines after key driver meeting

F1’s racing guidelines are set to be revised after a key meeting with drivers ahead of the Mexico City Grand Prix.

BBC Sport report that F1’s governing body the FIA have confirmed that it will “come up with revised wording” to cover the specifics of the controversial clash between Max Verstappen and Lando Norris at last weekend’s United States Grand Prix.

Norris lost a podium in Austin after he was hit with a five-second penalty for overtaking F1 title rival Verstappen off the track when both drivers ran wide at Turn 12 as they battled for third place with four laps to go at COTA.

McLaren were unsuccessful in their attempts to overturn Norris’s penalty for the contentious incident which divided opinion and led to several drivers calling for changes to be made to F1’s racing rules.

The drivers discussed the matter on Friday night in Mexico and it was agreed that changes would be made, according to BBC Sport, who said the meeting was described as “civilised” and “collaborate”.

The report added that “the FIA did not give details as to what would change, but the admission came in the context of a discussion about the tactics Verstappen had employed to keep his position and whether he should have been penalised.”

Several drivers made the point that Verstappen has continually exploited the rules and felt he should have been penalised for forcing his rival off track.

Lewis Hamilton, who had several controversial clashes with Verstappen during their epic 2021 title fight, said the Dutchman’s tactics needed addressing.

“It’s always been a grey area, that’s why he’s got away with it for so long,” the seven-time world champion told media including Crash.net in Mexico City. “They probably need to make some adjustments for sure.

"Also, we do have inconsistencies through rulings, weekend in, weekend out, obviously depending on which years it is. I mean, as a sport, we do need to level up on all areas and if you look at other global sports, they have full-time refs, for example, and I’m sure that wouldn’t be a bad thing for our sport.

“I experienced it many times with Max, you shouldn’t be able to just launch the car on the inside and be ahead and then you go off and still hold your position. So, they need to definitely work on this.”