- Red Bull driver Max Verstappen is staring at a five-place grid penalty
- Verstappen will receive his first grid penalty of the season
- It is changing parts as he switches to his fifth gearbox
Red Bull driver Max Verstappen is staring at a five-place grid penalty at the Belgian Grand Prix which gives his rivals a fresh window to win.
According to rumours in the Dutch media, Verstappen will receive his first grid penalty of the season for changing parts as he switches to his fifth gearbox, according to Erik van Haren of De Telegraaf.
For the 44-lap Belgian Grand Prix on Sunday, he will start from P6 even if he secures pole position in qualifying on Friday night.
Red Bull and the FIA haven’t spoken about this yet. Nonetheless, Verstappen won’t be too upset by the penalty because he won the race by 34 seconds in Hungary last time-out.
Max Verstappen. Photo/PlanetF1
He lined up P9 in Miami earlier this season owing to vehicle problems in qualifying, but he still won the race by five seconds over his teammate and pole-sitter Sergio Perez.
The Dutchman noted in a pre-Spa weekend interview with AD.nl that his RB19 is fast enough in dry and wet conditions.
“We have a fast car when it is dry and when it rains. It will be wet this weekend, but I am looking forward to it. It’s a great track and it would be great if I could win here again,” he stated.
He maintained that he has no problem winning races by a margin of 30 seconds or more. In fact, he takes joy in watching how wide of a margin Red Bull can open up.
He further added that he loves Solo race because they are better whenever there is team tension but he feels at ease with a wider gap.
The Red Bull constructor has won 12 straight races which is a stunning record for the F1 driver. He has won 44 races so far which gives credence to the fact that Red Bull is the fastest car on the grid yet.
Even with the five-grid penalty, he still has a chance to prove his dominance in F1.
Meanwhile, Adrian Newey a Red Bull design engineer is the man to thank for the team’s stellar F1 season and not Verstappen who drives the RB19 according to Mark Webber, an ex-Red Bull driver.
Red Bull. Photo/F1
Verstappen won the British Grand at Silverstone, giving Red Bull a perfect 10-for-10 record so far this season. It was Verstappen’s sixth straight victory which makes him the indisputable front-runner for the third World Championship in the 2023 season.
According to Webber, a seven-season Red Bull driver, Newey is the success factor in the Christian Horner-led team. Webber stated during ITV’s broadcast of the Goodwood Festival of Speed that Newey’s absence would have made the 2023 championship race considerably more competitive.
However, his presence is good news to Red Bull who are dominating the season effortlessly. Webber further views the combination of Verstappen’s prowess in the cockpit and Newey’s technological brilliance as the ultimate dose of success for the team.
Newey is phenomenal in Formula One due to his success as one of the best F1 car designers of all time. He is an England native born on December 26, 1958, and has had a spectacular career spanning several decades.
Many F1 teams have experienced great success thanks to Newey’s engineering brilliance and ground-breaking ideas.
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