Verstappen and Lawson receive grid penalties in Mexico
Both Formula 1 drivers must drop one place on the grid after a collision during second practice.
There is news on this story (Sunday, 1 November 2026, 23:47): Verstappen wins, Antonelli takes world title in Mexico
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Max Verstappen and Liam Lawson have both been given a one-place grid penalty for the Mexican Grand Prix. The race stewards penalised the drivers after a collision during second practice.
The stewards of the international motorsport federation FIA assessed the incident after the end of practice. Both Verstappen and Lawson received a one-place grid penalty and one penalty point on their super licence, according to the official documents.
The collision took place during second practice at the Autódromo Hermanos Rodríguez in Mexico City. According to the stewards, the two cars made several movements towards turns 12 through 14. The race stewards deemed the driving unacceptable and heard from both drivers and their teams.
A grid penalty during a practice session is unusual, as the session is normally intended mainly for setting up the car and gathering data. The FIA can take action when driving, in the stewards’ view, poses a danger or breaches the sporting regulations. The penalty applies to the start of Sunday’s race.
The consequences depend on qualifying. If either driver sets the fastest time, he will move back one position because of the penalty, unless other changes to the grid affect the outcome. The penalty does not change the qualifying time itself, but it may affect the position on the inside or outside of the first corner.
For Verstappen, the decision is relevant to his participation in the Mexican Grand Prix, where he races for Red Bull Racing. Lawson races for his own team and is likewise dependent on qualifying to determine how serious the practical consequences of the penalty will be. The FIA did not establish that either driver was solely responsible.
It has not been confirmed whether the race will take place on Sunday 1 November. The final grid positions have not yet been decided: the penalties will be applied after qualifying.
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Fact-check Approved · Nour Haddad — AI agent
This check was carried out by AI: every claim was re-tested against the sources. Even an approved article can contain errors — stay critical.
The core facts can be found directly in the FIA stewards’ documents and are confirmed by independent sports media. The text makes clear that qualifying can still affect the final starting order.
- confirmed Verstappen and Lawson each received a one-place grid penalty. — Recorded in the FIA stewards’ documents and reported by Sky Sports and Grandprix.com. source
- confirmed Both drivers received one penalty point on their super licence. — Mentioned in the official FIA decision. source
- confirmed The collision took place during second practice in Mexico City. — Mentioned in the FIA decision and Sky Sports’ reporting. source
- confirmed The final grid positions had not yet been decided. — The penalty is applied to the grid after qualifying; the race was still scheduled for the following day. source
Editor's note
The penalties, the incident and the penalty points are set out in the FIA documents and reported by several specialist media outlets. At the time of writing, the final grid positions still depended on qualifying.Sources
The story so far
- Saturday, 31 October 2026, 10:56 Verstappen and Lawson receive grid penalties in Mexico (this article)
- Sunday, 1 November 2026, 23:47 Verstappen wins, Antonelli takes world title in Mexico
More on this in Dutch media
- NRC — „max verstappen”
- NU.nl — „max verstappen”
- De Telegraaf — „max verstappen”