28 July 2023 , 08:57
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Max Verstappen is set to be handed a five-place grid penalty for Sunday's Belgium Grand Prix.
The 25-year-old secured a seventh successive win at the Hungarian Grand Prix last week to stretch his lead at the top of the drivers standings to 110 points. It was also Red Bull's 12th straight success, breaking McLaren's previous record for consecutive victories.
However, Verstappen's pursuit of an eighth in a row has taken a blow after the Dutchman was handed a grid penalty for installing his fifth gearbox of the season for the upcoming race. Verstappen has exceeded the allocated limit of four per driver's car in the Formula One season.
It means Verstappen can start no higher than sixth at this weekend's race in Belgium. Qualifying for the race is on Friday, with a separate sprint qualifying and sprint race on Saturday. Verstappen has been dominant so far this season and is set to claim his third world title in a row.
Red Bull, meanwhile, remain confident they can get through the season using the four available to his team-mate Sergio Perez. Verstappen, who had issues with his gear box at the Saudi Arabian Grand Prix back in March, hasn't been effected by his car's apparent issues.
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He stormed to victory in Hungary last week and continued his dominance at the top. Speaking after the race, Lewis Hamilton, who finished fourth, said: "The start, actually, the initial getaway wasn't the worst I've ever had, but it obviously wasn't as good as Max's.
Max Verstappen never looked back after beating Hamilton off the line (Getty Images)"I had a bit of wheelspin and then obviously Max was on the inside and he ran me wide and I got done by the two McLarens. So, definitely not a great start, kind of reminiscent of 2015 when I fell back from first."
He added: "After that, just didn't have the pace to keep up with the guys. The balance in the car was pretty awful on that first stint, a lot of understeer and oversteer through corner balance and I just couldn't keep up with them.
"So then, bit by bit, as we got through the next couple of stints, the car started to become more drivable, and then the last stint obviously was much better. If we had had the pace we had at the end, we would have been a little bit better I think through the day."
"I'm going to take the positives from [Saturday], amazing effort from the team to get to where we were and to beat everybody in qualifying was really spectacular for us and obviously shows that, whilst we don't have the best car, it was an incredible lap."