Grosjean, Verstappen facing Spa grid penalties

Lotus’s Romain Grosjean and Toro Rosso’s Max Verstappen are set for tougher-than-expected races in Belgium on Sunday thanks to impending grid penalties from the Spa-Francorchamps stewards.

Grosjean is set to lose five places for a gearbox change on his E23 Hybrid, his previous box having not completed the required six-race cycle, while Verstappen is expected to drop ten places for an engine change.

“It’s a pity, being this his home Grand Prix, but this is racing and we’re looking forward to the challenge!” said Toro Rosso’s chief race engineer, Phil Charles, of Verstappen’s plight. “As for the race, we will need to understand the tyres well and work on a good strategy.”

Verstappen - son of former Dutch F1 driver Jos Verstappen - races under his father’s nationality, but was actually born in Belgium to a Belgian mother.