ANALYSIS: Why was Raikkonen allowed to keep the place after passing Alonso off track?

Fernando Alonso was in the thick of the action at Austin against the Alfa Romeos and while the Alpine driver ended up retiring from the race, he was left with a sour taste having come out second-best from a couple of those battles...

It was on Lap 16 when Alonso and Kimi Raikkonen battled through Turn 1, the Alpine driver forcing the Alfa Romeo wide. But it was Raikkonen who kept the place and was not forced to return it, despite Alonso's protestations over the radio.

Later on, Alonso came across Antonio Giovinazzi at Turn 12 and passed him going wide at the corner. He was forced to give the place back. And again, when Giovinazzi and Alonso battled a couple of laps later at the same corner, the same thing happened, but this time it was the Italian who was forced to give the place back.

READ MORE: ‘I nearly crashed’ – Alonso on why he retired in Austin, and THAT battle with Raikkonen

It led the Spaniard to call the rules regarding on-track skirmishes "random" and his pit wall to complain to FIA Race Director Michael Masi over the radio.

So why was it OK for Raikkonen to hold his position off the track, and why did Alonso have to give Giovinazzi his place back later in the race?

Sam Collins explains all in the video above, which is a clip from the Post Race Show - available live and on demand every week on F1 TV and YouTube.