Red Bull driver Max Verstappen received a 5-place grid penalty for the 2024 Brazilian Grand Prix to be held in São Paulo. The sanction is due to the replacement of two components of his RB20 power unit, specifically the classic combustion engine and the exhaust, of which he has already exceeded the allowed limit for changes in the Formula 1 season.
The classic combustion engine has been changed for the sixth time in 2024, exceeding the allowed change limit of four, resulting in a 5-place grid penalty. Similarly, the exhaust was modified for the eighth time, beyond the limit of changes allowed by the FIA. In the case of a ninth change, further penalties would be applied to the Dutch driver, the current leader of the Formula 1 World Championship.
This penalty means that even if Verstappen secures pole position in the qualifying session of the Brazilian Grand Prix, he will not start from the first position, but from sixth. Previously, the Red Bull driver had also been sanctioned in the 2024 Belgian Grand Prix with a 10-place grid penalty.
During the first free practice of the Brazilian GP, Verstappen did not perform well, finishing in fifteenth place. This situation will lead him to start from the fifth position on the grid, after Friday's qualifying and the Sprint race that will take place before the main competition on Saturday in Interlagos.
