CALL FOR REVIEW OF TOUGH PENALTY

McLaren slam severe punishment for Norris in Qatar that affects constructors' title fight

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DOHA - McLaren principal Andrea Stella called for a sense of proportion after Lando Norris collected one of the harshest penalties in the rule book for ignoring yellow flags at the Qatar Grand Prix on Dec 1.

The Briton's 10-second stop-and-go penalty, for failing to slow when the flags were waved in response to debris on the track, cost crucial points in the team's constructors' championship battle with Ferrari.

The penalty, effectively costing over 30 seconds, dropped Norris from second down to the rear of the field, before he fought back to 10th with the fastest lap. Four-time world champion Max Verstappen of Red Bull won the race for a second year running, with Ferrari's Charles Leclerc second and Norris' teammate Oscar Piastri third.

Jenson Button, the 2009 world champion and a former McLaren driver, told Sky Sports television viewers that the penalty seemed "unbelievably extreme".

Stella said the data confirmed Norris had not slowed, effectively staying flat out, but the yellow flags were inconsistent - deployed and then removed despite the track situation staying the same.