Will Verstappen be given yet another grid penalty? Horner answers
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- Corwin Kunst
Max Verstappen was up to his fifth internal combustion engine unit of the season at Spa-Francorchamps. The Belgian Grand Prix was the 14th of the season, meaning there will be 10 more races to finish after the summer break. Will Verstappen survive with the engines he now has in his pool?
Christian Horner cannot give a straightforward answer, but if no more crazy things happen, Verstappen does not seem to need to incur another grid penalty later this season. When the Red Bull team principal asked whether Verstappen now has enough engines in his pool until the end of the season, he answered to GPBlog and other media: "It depends what happens to the pool, so we think we're okay at the moment."
Whereas Yuki Tsunoda had his complete engine (meaning every engine component) replaced last weekend in Belgium and received a grid penalty of 60 spots, Verstappen opted only for a new combustion engine. That cost him 'only' 10 spots.
Verstappen is already at maximum parts
Looking at Verstappen's other components, the Turbo Charger (TC), MGU-H, MGU-K, Energy Store (ES), Control Electronics all leave him with no extra room for a change without receiving a penalty. If there's a change, then the Dutchman would start from further down the grid, so Verstappen has to make do with his current pool.
Sergio Perez is yet to use a fifth internal combustion engine, even though his Energy Store and Control Electronics have already been replaced for a third time. He did that so back at the British Grand Prix. Verstappen is therefore already at the maximum allowed of two engine components with these two, so he will have to hope that his will last longer than the Mexican's.