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The FIA has confirmed that Max Verstappen and Daniel Ricciardo will receive grid penalties for the Italian Grand Prix on Sunday. The news was expected but only confirmed this morning during the first practice session, where both drivers ended fifth and sixth.
The team has decided to take the hit at the event this weekend in order to avoid a drop at the next race which will take place in Singapore. That race will arguably be Red Bull's strongest track of the year, meaning grid penalties would be very costly.
Ricciardo has taken his fifth combustion engine, fifth turbo and sixth MGU-H which will amount to a 20-place drop. Verstappen meanwhile, will receive a 15-place penalty after using a fifth combustion engine and fifth MGU-H. Toro Rosso's Carlos Sainz will also drop 10 places due to taking on a fifth MGU-H.
"It's no secret Singapore is a circuit we're strong on," Ricciardo said. "I don't want to take any risks in Singapore and risk racing with an old engine or something. If we have to be strategic about it, then we will. We're not in a comfortable position now to be taking any risks with the reliability, so we'll play it safe."
Fergal Walsh
Grand Prix of Belgium
C. Sainz jr
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Replies (2)
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Posts: 162
We get a lot of comment about how Honda have let McClaren down, but Renault have not done much better for Red Bull, perhaps even more unreliable for Max.
Maybe now Ilien is helping Honda and not Red Bull/Renault then Honda will start to look a lot better!
ENDR
Posts: 43
Yyyyeah, the thing is - after all the shit they threw at Renault they should be glad to have AN engine, cause for a while they had none. And right now it's either this or Honda...
And how come all of the technical defects happen to the kid? It can't be a coincidence, can it?