Max Verstappen is on the edge of a one-race suspension for the next two Grands Prix. A collision with George Russell at the Spanish Grand Prix resulted in penalty points, leaving him just one point away from an automatic ban.
The incident involving the Mercedes driver on lap 64 of Sunday`s race led stewards to hand Verstappen a significant 10-second penalty, which dropped him from fifth to tenth place in the final standings.
Furthermore, the stewards added three penalty points to the reigning world champion`s superlicence, bringing his total to 11 points accumulated over the last 12 months.
According to Formula 1`s penalty points system, drivers face a one-race ban if they accumulate 12 points within a 12-month period.
Penalty points remain on a driver`s superlicence for 12 months before they expire.
Last year, former Haas driver Kevin Magnussen became the first driver to receive a ban under this disciplinary system since its introduction in 2014.
Verstappen currently has two points from a collision with Lando Norris at last year`s Austrian Grand Prix that will not expire until June 30.
Two races – the Canadian Grand Prix on June 15 and this year`s Austrian GP on June 29 – are scheduled before the June 30 expiration date. This means Verstappen must carefully avoid any further incidents in Montreal and at the Red Bull Ring that could result in penalty points and force him to miss a race.
The next event after that is the British Grand Prix at Silverstone on July 6.
Verstappen will need to continue exercising caution in wheel-to-wheel battles well after the end of June, as he will retain at least nine penalty points until October 27, the date when another two points from last season`s incidents expire.
Commenting on the situation Sunday night in Barcelona, Red Bull team principal Christian Horner stated: “You can never guarantee anything. He`s just got to keep his nose clean in the next couple of races. Then the first points come off at the end of June.”
His ultimate tenth-place finish meant Verstappen fell 49 points behind championship leader Lando Norris – a deficit equivalent to two race victories.
