Lando Norris accused Formula One’s stewards of rushing their controversial decision to penalise him in his duel with Max Verstappen – a verdict the British driver called a “momentum killer” in his bid to win a maiden world crown.

Norris arrived for the US Grand Prix 52 points behind Verstappen, but he will depart Texas 57 adrift of his rival with only 146 points available over the concluding five rounds.

Norris started from pole position at Austin’s Circuit of the Americas before dropping to fourth following a poor first corner. Charles Leclerc went on to win from Ferrari team-mate Carlos Sainz, while Norris spent a compelling conclusion attempting to pass Verstappen in the battle for third.

Norris thought he had got the job done with four laps remaining when he moved ahead of Verstappen at Turn 12. However, the stewards handed him a five-second penalty on the final lap after they felt Norris gained an advantage by running off the track to complete the move, demoting him to fourth, behind Verstappen, after the chequered flag fell.

Explaining their decision, the four-man stewarding panel -which included former British driver Derek Warwick – said Norris lost the “right” to the corner because he was not level with Verstappen at the apex. However, they acknowledged that Norris had little choice other than to leave the circuit because Verstappen also ran over the white lines.

Asked if he understood the stewards’ verdict, Norris replied: “No, not really. The point where it is incorrect is what Max did, which was also to defend his position by going off the track and keeping the position.

“He went off the track because he over-defended and he made a mistake but he has gained from that. I had to go off to avoid him. With Max, you’ve got to commit, you cannot go half-hearted and people don’t understand that kind of thing.

“It is impossible to know if I could have stayed on the track (without that). Therefore, you cannot steward that kind of thing.

“It is just a rushed decision and they don’t hear or understand our points which they should do after the race. They just want to make a decision at the time.

“And you can’t appeal this kind of penalty which is again a silly thing because they are just guessing and I don’t think that is how stewarding should be done.”

Responding to Norris’ comments, Verstappen said: “It is quite clear, you cannot overtake outside the white lines.

“It happened to me in 2017 at this race, and I was penalised, and I lost my podium.”

Norris might have hoped he had banished the first-lap demons which have so far plagued his championship bid.

Up until the previous round in Singapore, Norris had failed to end the opening lap in the lead on any of the five previous occasions he has started from pole. Under the lights of the Marina Bay Circuit, Norris finally ended the hoodoo before going on to claim the most emphatic win of his life.

But Norris left the door open for Verstappen at the opening left-handed corner here, and then was too timid on the brakes allowing Verstappen to move ahead.

Lando Norris lost his pole advantage on the opening corner
Lando Norris lost his pole advantage on the opening corner (Eric Gay/AP)

Norris said Verstappen forced him off the road at the opening corner, but the stewards took no action.

And Norris later conceded: “If I defended better in Turn One and wasn’t driving like a muppet, then I should have led after Turn One, and we wouldn’t be having this conversation in the first place.

“It is a momentum killer (in the championship). The one guy I need to beat was Max and that was the guy I didn’t beat today. It wasn’t good enough. We have work to do and I have work to do on myself.”