After the FIA's controversial call to punish Max Verstappen for a bold overtaking move in the US GP, Christian Horner says F1 needs to rethink the notion of track limits.

The stewards hit Verstappen with a five-second penalty after they deemed that the Red Bull driver had gained an advantage by putting four wheels off the track at COTA's Turn 17.

Verstappen subsequently got the measure of Kimi Raikkonen to finish the race third, but the time penalty demoted him to fourth, much to the ire of the fan community and F1 in general.

Horner insists that either the FIA lays down the law for all drivers who run off the track, consistently, or refrains altogether from handing out penalties.

"It is what fans want to see," said Horner.

"If you don't want cars to go there, put a bigger kerb or put some gravel, or something else there.

"I think what is annoying is the lack of consistency. Where do you draw the line? For fans, for casual viewers, it needs to be clear."

Horner pointed to an earlier off-track excursion by Valtteri Bottas, which went unpunished, as evidence of the stewards' lack of consistency.

"How can you say that what Valtteri did on one hand is okay but what Max did isn't okay," said Horner.

"If in any other sport, you are out, then you are out. You cannot have, that is okay to be out there but not okay to be out here.

"Either get rid of it completely and let them race or if you don't want the cars to go there, put in a gravel trap, or bigger kerbs or a deterrent for the drivers not to go there."

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