Max Verstappen and Liam Lawson were each handed a one-place grid drop after colliding during Friday's second practice session at the Mexico Grand Prix, a penalty that also came with one penalty point apiece.
The incident happened at Turn 12, where Verstappen dived down the inside of Lawson and made contact. The session was then halted for 13 minutes while debris from the clash was cleared.
Why the stewards escalated the penalty
The punishment was more than a routine warning because stewards had already cautioned team managers earlier this year about similar incidents in practice. That history mattered in this case, and it led to the grid drops for both drivers.
Verstappen said of Lawson's move, “Maybe not very smart behaviour what he was trying to do there,” and added that while the incident would not change his weekend, Lawson should have acted “a little smarter.” He also said, “That's not very sensible behaviour from someone in his position, to pick a fight with me.”
Lawson saw it differently, saying, “He literally just drove into me.”
The backdrop adds another layer to the dispute. Both drivers are contracted to Red Bull, which owns the two teams, and Verstappen and Lawson were briefly teammates for two races at the start of last season. This year, they were teammates at Red Bull while Isack Hadjar was injured. Lawson has not yet been confirmed by Racing Bulls for next season.
For Verstappen, the penalty is unlikely to reshape the rest of the weekend on its own. For Lawson, it adds another small but visible setback at a time when his future has not yet been settled.
