Max Verstappen could face a penalty and kick off the Brazilian Grand Prix from the pit lane on Sunday. The Red Bull racer had a disappointing qualifying session and got knocked out in Q1 for the first time in four years, and so did teammate Yuki Tsunoda.
Disappointing outing for both Red Bull drivers
Both racers needed to improve their lap times in Q1 after their first runs, which were not good enough to get out of the bottom five. Tsunoda, who has been facing challenges in finding pace in the RB 21 since joining the side, could not do so. However, It was Verstappen's elimination that was a shocker.
The four-time F1 champion could not improve his lap time and clinched a lowly P16 starting position for the feature race on Sunday. With him already in such a bad position to start the race, Red Bull is looking to make radical changes to the car setup after parc ferme, which would mean Max Verstappen could have to begin the race from the pit lane.
Team advisor Helmut Marko spoke about the circumstance with ORF, saying (via RN365):
"We now have to see what we're going to do with this situation. Whether we're going to make drastic changes again, for example, that would mean starting from the pit lane. But for that, we need to sit down calmly and figure out what the best option is."
Lando Norris secures pole position at Brazilian Grand Prix
Championship leader Lando Norris secured the pole position for the race with Andrea Kimi Antonelli along with him on the front row. Charles Leclerc rounded up the Top 3, and championship contender Oscar Piastri, who crashed out in the Sprint race, secured P4, four-tenths slower than his McLaren teammate.
Even if Max Verstappen were to kick off the race from P16 without breaking parc fere for setup changes or an engine change, it would not be unknown territory for him. The Red Bull racer kicked off the 2024 Brazilian Grand Prix from P17 after taking a five-place grid penalty for an engine change after qualifying and went on to script a historic win from that position.