Red Bull’s Max Verstappen hit with five-place grid penalty after taking fifth gearbox ahead of Belgian Grand Prix

Red Bull world champion Max Verstappen will take a five-place grid penalty for the Belgian Grand Prix this weekend after his team fitted a fifth gearbox to his vehicle.

Drivers are allowed to take four gearboxes over the course of the season without penalty, but exceeding the threshold is met with a grid-place penalty.

The Dutchman is the first driver of the season to reach his fifth gearbox, and comes against the backdrop of repeated complaints from Verstappen over his gear syncing.

Red Bull team-mate Sergio Perez has also taken four gearboxes already, as have both Haas drivers, Nico Hulkenberg and Kevin Magnussen, and Alpine’s Pierre Gasly.

Spa is a track that is conducive to more overtaking compared to many other circuits, so if Red Bull are confident that they will bring a fast car to the track then they may anticipate the Belgian Grand Prix mitigating the impact of the penalty.

Verstappen has won the last seven F1 races in a row and is the runaway championship leader with a 110-point lead over Perez.

Having triumphed at the Hungaroring in the last Grand Prix, Verstappen is confident his car is competitive.

“I think we have a quick car,” he said. “Of course, there are a lot of other teams and I think they brought a lot more than us this year, because we couldn’t.

“But we are very happy with how the car is performing. Our Saturday is maybe not ideal, but I think on the Sunday you can see the upgrades we brought. It was a good race to see it working.”

Verstappen has good recent memories of Spa after starting in 14th last season but sweeping to victory regardless.

“Spa is my favourite track, of course,” said Verstappen ahead of the race.

“So, I’m looking forward to racing there and seeing the fans – it should be a fun weekend. It’s our final push before the summer break.”