Max Versteppen will have to make up five places during the Grand Prix of São Paulo on Sunday.
Verstappen’s Red Bull Racing team had to replace the combustion engine in his car prior to the race weekend. The team has already surpassed the number of ICEs used in a season and the use of the extra ICE is a five-point penalty this weekend, as it is the second ICE penalty Verstappen has received this season. He exceeded the maximum for the first time at Spa, where he received a 10-place grid penalty. Each consecutive penalty amounts to five places.
The penalty is significant due to Verstappen’s lead in the Drivers’ Championship. After finishing sixth in Mexico a week ago, Verstappen’s gap to Lando Norris is 47 points with four Grand Prix races and two sprint races remaining. Norris finished second behind Carlos Sainz in Mexico City.
Verstappen is still a big favorite to win the title; if Norris were to win each of the remaining six events and score the fastest lap in all four Grand Prix races while Verstappen was running second, he would only gain 34 points over Verstappen.
The ICE change became inevitable during the course of the race weekend in Mexico, as Verstappen’s car was significantly slower on the straights than other competitors. He finished sixth due to two 10-second penalties for running Norris off the track, but would not have been eligible for the race win had he not been penalized.
However, Interlagos is a great place for an engine change. The track is favorable for overtaking, thanks to the long front straight into Turn 1 and the combination of corners early in the lap. Lewis Hamilton famously went from last to fifth in the 2021 sprint race and then went from 10th to first in the Grand Prix to beat Verstappen for the win.
