Penalised Oscar Piastri fumes after 'carbon copy' Max Verstappen move goes unpunished

Oscar Piastri wants a please explain from F1 stewards after teammate Lando Norris was robbed of third place in Monday morning's (AEDT) US Grand Prix.

Norris was slapped with a five-second penalty for leaving the track and gaining an advantage in his fight with Max Verstappen, although many believe it was only because Verstappen forced him off.

A day earlier, Piastri had copped his own five second penalty for forcing Pierre Gasly off the track at the same corner during the sprint race. His move was eerily similar to that of Verstappen, who went unpunished.

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Having started 16th, Piastri was charging through the field and made a bold move on the Alpine of Pierre Gasly. Piastri made the apex, and stayed within the lines on the exit.

He crossed the line 10th, with more than five seconds back to Yuki Tsunoda in 11th, which meant the penalty had no effect on the outcome of the race.

Norris had got past Verstappen under DRS down the back straight, but was forced off the track as the Dutchman lunged to get the spot back.

Both Verstappen and Norris went beyond the white line delineating the edge of the track. Norris returned to the track in front of Verstappen and drove away to the chequered flag.

Norris was pinged for leaving the track and gaining an advantage, while Verstappen went unpunished for forcing him off. Norris crossed the line just over four seconds ahead of Verstappen, and the positions were swapped.

Piastri admitted to Sky Sports F1 after the sprint race he thought the penalty was "probably fair", although former F1 driver Anthony Davidson disagreed.

After the grand prix, Piastri changed his tone, and said that he stayed within the lines and Verstappen didn't, which was a particular point of confusion.

"My penalty ... was basically a carbon copy of Max and Lando, but I stayed on the track and I got the penalty. So no, it's not very clear," he said.

"It's tough ... I feel like as drivers, we also all kind of have different interpretations of what we think is fair and what's not, especially when it comes to being on the outside of another driver.

"The difference of 10 or 20 centimetres shouldn't be the difference of you having the right to space or not having the right to space, and for stewards who have generally not driven a car very much, it's very tough to judge that in the moment especially.

"I think my incident and Lando and Max's looked very similar with the opposite penalties.

"I'm sure we'll have some questions."

The F1 season will continue with the Mexican Grand Prix this weekend.