Red Bull fined after trying to remove Norris grid tape

Red Bull were fined 50,000 euros (£43,500) because a squad personnel returned to nan grid to effort to region nan portion marking McLaren driver Lando Norris' grid position for nan United States Grand Prix.

Half of nan good was suspended for nan remainder of nan 2025 play connected information nan incident does not hap again.

Governing assemblage nan FIA said nan Red Bull worker had ignored instructions from marshals who were trying to "prevent him from entering nan gross good area".

Removing a rival's portion marker is not against nan rules - nan squad personnel was successful breach of nan regulations because he should not person been wherever he was astatine nan time.

A root said it was not nan first clip Red Bull had done this to a rival team, usually their closest competitor earlier a race, and that McLaren were utilizing stronger portion this clip to forestall it happening.

It was nan trouble successful getting nan portion disconnected that led to nan Red Bull squad personnel being wherever he was aft nan statement thigh had started.

The incident was first reported by The Race and has been verified by BBC Sport.

Norris had qualified 2nd to polesitter Max Verstappen successful Austin and they vanished nan title successful nan aforesaid order.

McLaren asked nan FIA astatine nan commencement of nan play if they could usage portion to people their grid positions successful this way.

Drivers are penalised if they do not correctly position their cars connected nan grid. Putting portion connected nan wall by nan way is intended to thief them do this, arsenic visibility retired of cars is constricted and drivers cannot easy spot nan lines connected nan way marking their grid box.

A stewards' study said that a Red Bull typical astatine nan proceeding called to analyse nan matter said that nan squad personnel successful mobility had "informed him that he was not alert of nan efforts of nan marshals to extremity him".

The study added: "However, nan stewards find that immoderate personification affiliated to a squad aliases different stakeholders should beryllium alert that entering nan way aliases hindering nan information measures to hole nan way for nan title aft nan grid has been cleared is perfectly prohibited.

"Thus, irrespective of whether aliases not nan instructions of nan applicable officials person been realised by nan personification concerned, hindering aliases delaying nan process of closing nan gates earlier nan title commencement must beryllium considered arsenic an unsafe enactment and truthful a important punishment to nan squad is warranted."

McLaren and Red Bull declined to comment.

Before nan logic for nan incident came to ray and earlier nan stewards had issued their verdict, Red Bull squad main Laurent Mekies said he believed nan incident was "a misunderstanding".

He added: "We went to spot nan video pinch nan FIA. Sure, it's thing we tin do amended successful nan future, but surely connected our broadside we do not consciousness that we person ignored immoderate instructions and we did not get immoderate circumstantial instructions.

"So I deliberation it's very mini things, but nevertheless thing we will reside successful nan future."