FIA stewards have given Max Verstappen (Red Bull) and Liam Lawson (Racing Bulls) a one-place grid penalty for Sunday's race and one superlicence penalty point each for their contact in Friday's FP2. A penalty for contact in practice carries straight over to qualifying. Third practice starts at 11:30 local time on Saturday (17:30 UTC), and qualifying follows at 15:00 local time (21:00 UTC).
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What happened in FP2
According to Autosport, the trouble began on the approach to Turn 12, heading into the Foro Sol stadium section. Verstappen tried to pass Lawson, Lawson defended, and the two entered the stadium side by side. Verstappen says his former team-mate forced him off the track on the outside of Turn 13, and the cars touched after he went over the kerbs at Turn 14. The contact brought out a red flag.
In Formula1.com's report, Lawson said Verstappen "literally drove into me". Verstappen replied that "it's just not very smart behavior when you're in his position, to pick a fight with me." Racing Bulls team principal Alan Permane called it a "storm in a teacup" and described the moves as "unnecessary". Verstappen's bargeboards were damaged, and The Race said the left-hand bargeboard was "shattered". Red Bull technical director Pierre Wache said the damage could be fixed before FP3.
The stewards' reasoning
The FIA decision, as quoted by Autosport, says car 3 (Verstappen) was on a preparation lap and car 30 (Lawson) was on a cool-down lap preparing for another push lap. It adds that both drivers "behaved in a manner that was considered unacceptable by the Stewards, particularly in view of the warning that had been given at the Team Managers meeting earlier this day." Both drivers admitted the moves were unnecessary and "clumsy".
The stewards cited similar incidents between drivers in free practice this year, and consistency with contact incidents in practice in previous years, as the reasons to escalate the penalty from a formal warning to a grid penalty. Autosport said the decision took hours. The article does not say what the Team Managers meeting warning covered, or what each driver's total penalty points now stand at.
What it means for the grid
The penalty is a one-place drop on Sunday's grid. Autosport does not say where either driver will qualify, so their actual starting positions will only be settled once qualifying is over.
Formula1.com's team comments after FP2 said Verstappen set his fastest time in a car that was lacking some downforce. How the repaired car performs in FP3 is the first clue to the order in qualifying.