Max Verstappen will start Sunday’s Sao Paulo Grand Prix on a relative back foot following an engine change that will demote the Red Bull driver five positions on the event’s grid.
Red Bull has added a new internal combustion engine (ICE) – his sixth – to the Dutchman’s pool of hardware. As a reminder, drivers are only allowed three ICEs across the entire 24-race season.
The championship leader had already been hit with a five-place grid drop at the Belgian Grand Prix at Spa for taking on a new ICE, with the Dutchman starting that race from P11 and concluding the day P4.
The change at Interlagos, which was predicted by Red Bull motorsport advisor Helmut Marko, comes after Verstappen suffered a persistent engine issue on the opening day of practice at the Mexico City Grand Prix last weekend.
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Verstappen’s car has also received a new exhaust system, his eighth out of eight such components that are permitted during the year.
On the other side of the Red Bull garage, Sergio Perez has reverted to a previously used RB20 chassis on the Mexican driver’s request.
“We've changed him back into a different chassis, which we can do,” commented Red Bull chief engineer Paul Monaghan.
“He asked if we can, and we said fine. The boys have got a bit of work, but they didn't mind.”
©RedBull
Furthermore, Perez will once again rely on an older floor specification compared to Max Verstappen. However, the Mexican is optimistic that he will be equipped with the latest floor spec for the Las Vegas Grand Prix later this month.
“We don’t have it at the moment. Hopefully for Vegas, as there will be a little bit more time,” said Perez. [It means] we are carrying a little bit of weight, and it is not ideal, but the team is doing the best they can.”
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