Max Verstappen ruled out a new engine for his upcoming races, saying that the advantage the move offers is not significant.
The debate of taking penalties for engine changes and making it up with the increased speed has been raging in F1 recently. It came alive with Lewis Hamilton taking a new engine, starting from the back and winning the race due to his astonishing pace and of course racecraft.
Swapping engines seems to mitigate the penalty the driver would have to take. The increased pace is crucial, and especially if you are in a title race like the Dutchman is.
The Red Bull driver has been second-best for a while now, having failed to win the last two races. The gap between himself and Hamilton is now just eight points, which is an easy lead to overturn in two races. Taking a new engine could be the retort, but according to the championship leader, it is not.
Verstappen ruled out a new engine for his upcoming races, and said that the risk-reward ratio is not as good as it is for Mercedes.
“Well, we don’t have that peak (in power and speed) with a new engine as Mercedes has,” he said on Thursday, as quoted by f1i.com.
“Our engine is actually pretty consistent throughout its lifespan. So doing an engine change like that doesn’t really bring us a lot.”
Still a possibility
Red Bull haven’t completely ruled out the possibility of fitting Verstappen’s car with a new engine. They are looking at all the options and will make the decision accordingly. If they are to do it, they are looking at the Abu Dhabi GP as the place.
Until then, the momentum seems to be on Hamilton’s side. However, Verstappen rubbished the idea of it, and said that he believes in making momentum.
“I don’t believe in something like momentum myself,” he said.
“You have to perform and do well every weekend again. We’ll see this weekend, but I always find it hard to predict what the situation will be like exactly.
“It’s all in the details, but more things can happen on a street circuit than on a normal circuit anyway,” he concluded.
Read more: Ricciardo believes the FIA got one thing right in its dubious Verstappen verdict