MAX VERSTAPPEN TAKES HUGE GRID PENALTY FOR BELGIAN GRAND PRIX

Max Verstappen will take a whopping 10-place grid penalty for this weekend’s Belgian Grand Prix, it has been confirmed.

The three-time Formula 1 champion has a commanding lead in the standings but his chances of extending it in the final race before the summer break are now slim.

Red Bull have exceeded the engine allowance on Verstappen’s car and have chosen this weekend to introduce a new power unit and take a penalty.

It means the Dutchman will start Sunday’s race at Spa-Francorchamps from at best 11th on the grid and it is the third Belgium Grand Prix in a row that he has taken a grid penalty.

He still managed to win on those occasions, from 14th in 2022 and from sixth in 2023, but this year his task will be much harder now that McLaren appear to have the edge on pace, with Mercedes and Ferrari not far behind.

And Verstappen acknowledged that with the penalty it will be hard for him to claim another victory at one of his favourite tracks, saying: ‘I knew of course that it is coming, so that’s not a surprise to me.

‘Some tracks naturally are a bit better [to overtake on] than others. Of course, on a street circuit, you wouldn’t want to have an engine penalty.

‘If you look at our last few races where we haven’t been particularly been the fastest, I wouldn’t say that with 10 places extra, we have a chance of winning.’

‘But again, a race can always be turned upside down within moments. You have to be open minded, try to make the best of it. That’s what we’ll try to do.’

Additionally, RB’s Yuki Tsunoda will start the race from the back of the grid after he too was given a new engine for the race.

Verstappen leads the championship by 76 points after 13 races, with Lando Norris in second, meaning not matter what happens in the next two races in Belgium and the Netherlands he will still be top.

But it’s been a fairly miserable week for the 26-year-old who slumped to a disappointing fifth last weekend and received heavy criticism for his sweary outbursts.

While he made no apology for his conduct on and off track, Sir Lewis Hamilton has warned his rival to start ‘acting like a world champion’.

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2024-07-26T12:08:13Z dg43tfdfdgfd