Formula 1 Focus: F1 returns with a bang as the gloves come off between Norris & Verstappen
After an uncharacteristically long autumn break, Formula 1 is back, and it's fair to say that it returned in style with one of the best weekends of the season.
While Ferrari's dominance on race day meant we didn't get a fight for the win, the Circuit of the Americas produced some thrilling racing as it always does on both Saturday and Sunday; for me, it's right up there with the best tracks on the calendar.
So good is it that as I watched, I couldn't help but wish it took place at the very end of the campaign as it's a far more worthy stage for the climax of a season than those that have been placed there for non-sporting reasons.
That being said, the United States Grand Prix could still turn out to be a title-defining round, and these are my main takeaways from it.
In the heat of battle, Verstappen remains number one
"There is something to be said for the fact that all of (Lando) Norris' wins have come when he's had a dominant car and that he's faltered when put under pressure in a tight battle with other drivers," I wrote in my last column after the Singapore Grand Prix, and that continued to be the case in Austin.
It became clear early on in the weekend that Red Bull had closed the gap to McLaren over the autumn break and Max Verstappen made the most of that, beating his title rival in both the sprint and the main race to extend his lead at the top of the championship by five points, but that swing could have easily been in Norris' favour instead.
He put himself on pole for Sunday's race but, not for the first time, had lost the lead by the end of Turn 1, allowing Charles Leclerc through as a result of his efforts to defend from Verstappen, who ultimately got past him too.
The Brit then got his head down and caught the Dutchman with around 10 laps to go, and the battle that ensued was a stark reminder that one of them has been fighting at the front of the field for the entirety of his F1 career and the other is fairly new to the scene.
Verstappen defended the final podium place excellently, positioning his car perfectly time and time again to keep Norris behind despite having much older tyres, and when the Brit finally forced his way past, he ultimately made the wrong decision.
Whether the five-second penalty that put him back behind his title rival was fair or not is something I'll look at in a second, but he really should have played things safe and given the position back considering he had much more pace and could have overtaken Verstappen again before the end of the race.
The fact that he preferred to risk getting a penalty rather than have to battle his way past his opponent again is a testament to Verstappen's defensive driving, and the latest of many examples of Norris and McLaren lacking the decision-making abilities under the pressure to really get a title challenge going.
Controversial calls put rules in the spotlight
That being said, Norris very much has a right to feel aggrieved about the incident that lost him a third-place finish to Verstappen.
Granted, he was outside the track limits when he got past the Dutchman, but he was undoubtedly forced off by the Red Bull man; if he hadn't taken a wider line, the two would have crashed.
Bearing that in mind, I don't think Norris can have too many complaints about his own penalty - passing a car off-track and not giving the place back is objectively against the rules - but he can about the fact that Verstappen didn't receive a penalty of his own.
Earlier in the race, George Russell and Yuki Tsuonda were both involved in similar incidents - both were on the inside like Verstappen was and also forced their opponents wide - and were handed five-second penalties for forcing the driver they were racing off the track, so why wasn't the reigning champion?
Well, as per the official guidelines, he got away with it because he was ahead at the start of the corner where he forced his opponent into the run-off area whereas Russell and Tsunoda were behind, doing the attacking rather than the defending.
Rules are rules, but I'm really not sure this is a fair one. Surely drivers shouldn't be allowed to make the person they're battling choose between crashing into them and exceeding track limits?
Not for the first time, it feels like the stewards need to be less rigid and exercise more common sense, judging each incident individually rather than having a questionable one-size-fits-all rule.
Ferrari and Lawson keep the pressure on Perez
With Red Bull never taking Tsunoda seriously for reasons only they know, Daniel Ricciardo was the man most likely to replace the struggling Sergio Perez at Red Bull, so you'd think that the Aussie being dropped would have relieved the Mexican of some pressure, but it became clear in Austin that that isn't the case.
That's mainly because Liam Lawson, Ricciardo's replacement, was one of the drivers of the weekend, gaining 10 places on Sunday to finish ninth, just two positions and 10 seconds behind Perez in a much slower car.
That will be setting off alarm bells for 'Checo' given that Christian Horner and Red Bull have acknowledged that Lawson being promoted and driving alongside Verstappen next season is a possibility if he impresses in the races that remain this year.
What's more, Ferrari rocked up to the Lone Star State with the best race pace of anyone and cruised to first and second place, moving just eight points behind Red Bull as a result.
The Italian team's successful autumn upgrades have put the reigning champions in serious danger of not only failing to defend their constructors' title but being beaten to second too, which would cost them a lot of money.
Heads may have to roll if that happens, and given his lack of points would be as big a reason as any for such an outcome, Perez's would be one of the first on the chopping block.
A combination of Lawson impressing and Ferrari leapfrogging Red Bull would surely spell the end of his Red Bull career, so he desperately needs to finish the season with a flourish.
