Verstappen to Start from the Back in São Paulo as Hamilton, Leclerc and Russell Take Penalties
Max Verstappen will start the São Paulo Grand Prix from the back of the grid because of an engine penalty. BBC Sport Lewis Hamilton and Charles Leclerc will each drop ten places, and George Russell will lose five. The shuffle reshapes Sunday's race before a single car has moved.
Red Bull found problems with Verstappen's car after Friday practice and will fit an all-new engine. The penalty comes from the engine rules. Every driver gets four power unit engines per season, and using more parts than allowed brings an automatic grid penalty, which pushes the driver back from where qualifying put them.
Hamilton and Leclerc have both fitted new internal combustion engines, the petrol-burning heart of the power unit, and both have now exceeded the four-engine limit for the first time this year. Russell had already gone over the limit, and his five-place drop is for using too many engine parts. BBC Sport
Verstappen has been here before. At the 2024 São Paulo race he started 17th after a similar penalty and still won. He has also won 74 Grands Prix in his career, according to Reuters' statistics pack. Reuters
The championship picture makes the grid drop matter more. As of 4 November, Verstappen was runner-up in the drivers' standings, 119 points behind the leader, Reuters reported. A win from the back would be a long way from the points that count, and every place lost on Sunday is a place his rivals can bank.
Hamilton and Leclerc are teammates at Ferrari, and their relationship is in the spotlight. In Mexico City, Hamilton claimed his first Ferrari pole. In the opening-lap fight for the lead, the two went deep at Turn 4, and Leclerc received a five-second time penalty for passing Hamilton off the track. Leclerc later said he deserved it. Hamilton has said he wants talks with Ferrari before the São Paulo race. Formula 1
Weather is another wild card. Rain is forecast overnight from Saturday into Sunday in São Paulo, and it could arrive at any point on race day. Wet running can scramble strategies, with drivers choosing when to pit for different tyres, so a damp track may reward whoever reads the conditions best.
Formula 1 also confirmed some good news for the venue. The Interlagos circuit has extended its contract to host a Grand Prix until 2035, which keeps the race on one of the sport's most loved tracks for almost another decade. BBC Sport
For the fans in the grandstands, the story is simple. Verstappen has a long climb, Hamilton, Leclerc and Russell start further back than their qualifying pace suggests, and the lights go out on Sunday with the rain still on the radar.
