Verstappen stripped of pole, hands Hamilton sixth title boost

Max Verstappen was given a three-place grid penalty and stripped of pole position at the Mexican Grand Prix late Saturday after race stewards ruled he failed to slow for a yellow flag following a dramatic crash which saw Valtteri Bottas bury his Mercedes into a trackside barrier.

The Red Bull driver’s penalty means that Charles Leclerc of Ferrari was promoted to pole position ahead of teammate Sebastian Vettel with world champion-elect Lewis Hamilton moved up to third from fourth. The Dutchman, who will start on the second row alongside Hamilton, was also handed two penalty points on his licence after dismissing concerns for the sport’s regulations during a news conference.

Verstappen, the winner in Mexico in 2017 and 2018, was on provisional pole when Bottas crashed heavily in his Mercedes at the final corner of his last run in Q3. He had no need to improve his lap time, as his rivals had failed to beat his first attempt, but sped on. He told reporters that he saw Bottas’s crashed car at the final corner and did not back off, thus setting a new record fastest lap as he improved.

Verstappen, the author of his own downfall, said: “I think we know what we are doing otherwise we wouldn’t be driving an F1 car. “It’s qualifying and you go for it. If they want to delete the lap, then delete the lap…..”