On the Belgian Grand Prix every of the previous two seasons Max Verstappen took a grid penalty as Pink Bull modified parts on his race automobile.
Verstappen overcame these penalties to win in each 2022 and 2023.
As we and others have famous, 2024 is just not both of these seasons. The Method 1 grid has modified, and the times of Pink Bull dominating the sphere — and Verstappen overcoming penalties with ease — are behind us. Verstappen was quickest on Saturday and that efficiency throughout qualifying led many to imagine that he would overcome the ten-place grid penalty, and P11 begin, within the Belgian Grand Prix on Sunday.
However that was not the case. Verstappen crossed the road fifth on Sunday and was promoted to fourth following the disqualification handed all the way down to George Russell following a post-race inspection. That restoration drive is a formidable end result to make sure given his beginning place, however one other reminder that his and Pink Bull’s days of dominance over the grid are within the rear-view mirror.
“The primary stint, I stayed out of hassle the primary few laps, acquired into that DRS prepare and mainly simply stayed there. Then we tried to do a pleasant undercut which I believe labored fairly nicely, however yeah the vehicles are all very comparable in tempo after which it’s simply very tough to maneuver up,” mentioned Verstappen after the race.
“So, I believe from P11 we did a very good job. I believe trying on the championship it was a constructive day for me, after all you need extra however yeah with our tempo the previous couple of races, it’s not reasonable to suppose we will go P11 all the way in which to the entrance once more,” added the Pink Bull driver. “These days are behind sadly. However we’ve got loads of issues to analyse over the break and see if we will enhance the automobile beginning already in Zandvoort.”
The outcomes noticed Verstappen prolong his lead over Lando Norris to 78 factors, because the Pink Bull driver banked 12 factors on Sunday, versus Norris’ ten. However issues are completely different on the Constructors’ facet of issues, as McLaren banked 28 factors on Sunday at Spa, in distinction to the 19 Pink Bull was capable of placed on the board.
Which means that because the grid goes quiet for the summer time shutdown, McLaren is simply 42 factors behind Pink Bull. That truth would possibly result in some fascinating discussions in Milton Keynes over the following few weeks relating to the standing of Sergio Pérez alongside Verstappen.
“Fortunately it’s altering a little bit bit, so it’s not one specific staff that’s taking factors away however yeah, we all know we’ve got a bit of labor to do, we wish to do higher and we’ll see what we will do,” concluded Verstappen on Sunday at Spa.
Can Pink Bull discover the solutions they’re looking for? How that query will get answered will go a great distance towards writing the ultimate chapter of what’s turning into a legendary F1 season.
