Verstappen’s F1 engine gets all-clear after crucial practice run

Red Bull ran Verstappen’s engine throughout Friday practice at the Hungaroring to evaluate its condition and whether it could continue to be used within his pool of power units for the rest of the 2021 season.

Following Friday’s pair of practice sessions, Honda F1’s technical director Toyoharu Tanabe confirmed the power unit was “working as normal” despite being involved in a 51G impact after a collision with title rival Lewis Hamilton on the opening lap of the British Grand Prix.

“It was good to see that Max is not suffering any ill effects from the Silverstone crash and we were able to check that the PU that he used in the British GP weekend is working as normal,” said Tanabe.

It marks a boost for Verstappen with drivers restricted to how many power unit elements they can use over the course of a season.

Had any component needed changing following his Silverstone crash, the Dutchman would have likely faced the prospect of a grid penalty later in the season.

But with the PU given the all-clear by Honda, Red Bull can now choose to either run it for the rest of the Hungary weekend or switch it back into its permitted pool.

Verstappen heads into the final race before F1’s summer break holding an eight-point championship lead over Hamilton.

Despite ending Friday nearly 0.3s down on Valtteri Bottas’ benchmark, Verstappen stressed the gap to Mercedes is “nothing too big to overcome”.