Max Verstappen notched a third-place end in final week’s Formulation 1 United States Grand Prix. Whereas the outcome was fraught with controversy — Verstappen benefited from a five-second handed all the way down to his rival within the Drivers’ Championship, Lando Norris, which McLaren has since requested a “proper of evaluate” — the outcome allowed Verstappen to outscore his rival for the primary time because the Belgian Grand Prix.
His try at an identical outcome on this week’s Mexico Metropolis Grand Prix has gotten off to a rocky begin.
Verstappen’s first apply session was marked not solely by some flooring injury he picked up on his FB20, however was additionally lower brief attributable to a lack of energy unit in his automotive. Whereas Verstappen returned to the observe for the prolonged 90-minute FP2 session in Mexico Metropolis — Pirelli is conducting a tire check which resulted within the elongated apply session — Verstappen’s FP2 was once more lower brief, because the crew reported one other downside along with his energy unit:
Automobile 1 won’t run once more in FP2 as we examine a PU difficulty additional #F1 || #MexicoGP
— Oracle Crimson Bull Racing (@redbullracing) October 25, 2024
Talking after FP1, Crimson Bull Senior Advisor Dr. Helmut Marko famous each the ground injury, in addition to some uncertainty over the lack of energy:
Helmut Marko on Max’s flooring injury and engine difficulty
“The ground is badly broken. We have now to exchange it. Fortuitously, we nonetheless have a spare flooring. And as for the engine: we do not know precisely what the trigger is but.”
— RBR Day by day (@RBR_Daily) October 25, 2024
If Crimson Bull is compelled to vary the ability unit on Verstappen’s RB20, he would face a five-place grid penalty because of this. Verstappen already exceeded his allotted variety of energy models this season and served a penalty when the crew modified out the ability unit on his RB20 on the Belgian Grand Prix again in July.
This comes at a vital time within the season for Verstappen and Crimson Bull. Whereas he leads Norris by 57 factors within the Drivers’ Championship (and Charles Leclerc by 79 factors) Crimson Bull trails McLaren within the Constructors’ Championship by 40 factors, and they’re solely 8 factors forward of Ferrari in that struggle.
With Sergio Pérez in the course of what he described this week as a “horrible season,” Crimson Bull wants all the things they will get from Verstappen if they will one way or the other pull out a Constructors’ Championship. As for the Drivers’ Championship, Verstappen wants each level he can salvage to carry off Norris and Leclerc.
This isn’t how they needed to start out their journey to Mexico Metropolis.
