Max Verstappen could benefit from Spa track change as he faces potential grid penalty

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Max Verstappen is facing a 10-place grid penalty at the Belgian Grand Prix due to exceeding his engine component allowance.

It is a big setback for the Dutchman coming off the back of another race where Red Bull appeared to struggle, as he is likely to start towards the rear of the field.

Verstappen was always on the verge of a penalty since losing his power unit during the Canadian Grand Prix weekend after Red Bull was forced to introduce a fourth Honda power unit to the pool.

Red Bull has elected to take it when they have both high-speed circuits Spa and Monza close to each other on the calendar, while the 100m elevation change at Belgium tends to affect horsepower output.

Verstappen has won races from the back of the grid at Spa before, notably in 2022 when he started from 14th and worked his way up to first within 12 laps. There is another track-specific change confirmed by the FIA for the Belgian Grand Prix that is set to play into his hands.

Shortening of DRS zone to help Red Bull at Spa

The first DRS zone for this weekend has been shortened by 75 meters compared to last year along the Kemmel Straight.

This year the activation point is now 230 meters after Turn 4 instead of 305 meters last year. While this does mean drivers will have shorter DRS zones this year, it should play into the hands of Red Bull.

The RB20 is known for having a powerful DRS effect when activated, with both Verstappen and Sergio Perez often seen coming from several meters back to pull off an overtake.

This was recently on display at the Spanish GP when Verstappen came from several car lengths back to make a crucial pass on George Russell for the lead and went on to win.

Red Bull shown strength at similar tracks to Spa

Both drivers will be looking for a better weekend at Spa as Sergio Perez faces questions over his future, having recently come under fire from Helmut Marko, and Verstappen attempts to improve following a disappointing Hungarian GP which led to a series of expletive-ridden messages to his Red Bull engineer over team radio.

At tracks with similar characteristics as Spa, such as high speed straight sections, Red Bull has come out as fastest in the speed traps among the leading teams.

At the Shanghai International Circuit, which features one of the longest straights in F1, Verstappen was seventh fastest in the speed trap at 207mph compared to Lando Norris (205mph) and Oscar Piastri (204mph) who were 17th and 19th respectively.

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During the Australian GP both Verstappen and Sergio Perez topped the speed trap, with Norris 13th and Piastri 5th fastest. This advantage continued at the Austrian GP, Verstappen posted the third-quickest speed at 198mph in the speed trap compared to Norris who was 197mph.

Red Bull is expected to be switching back to their low-downforce spec bodywork for this weekend, and given their previous advantage and Verstappen’s history coming from the back, it should be a factor that favours them regardless of where they start the race on Sunday.