As F1 makes its second trip across the Atlantic in the space of five weeks, Max Verstappen is the centre of attention once again. Before Miami in May, it was due to heartwarming reasons, as he became a father for the first time a few days earlier. Yet this weekend, ahead of the Canadian Grand Prix, the Red Bull driver knows he is on his final warning on-track.
The three penalty points accumulated at the last meet in Spain – punishment for a deliberate ram into George Russell – means the enigmatic Dutchman is just one point away from a race suspension. A suspension which, surely, would put his faint 2025 title hopes in the dust.
As such, Verstappen must keep his nose clean this weekend, and in Austria in a fortnight’s time, before two of his 11 points are wiped from his licence. Twelve across a year trigger a ban; it is a fair system, designed to curtail erratic, dangerous manoeuvres such as the one seen in Barcelona.
As dissected in the aftermath, what makes Verstappen a modern-day F1 great is his all-out, bombastic style of racing. He sees an overtaking opportunity where others simply concede the opportunity. Even more so, he is desperate in his defence of track position, particularly when faced with a quicker car behind. However, at times, he crosses the metaphorical black line.
Yet one thing is for sure: race ban looming or not, he will not change.
“It’s there, right?’ Verstappen said of the ban threat. “There’s nothing you can do about it. We just focus ahead, try and do the best we can.
“It’s not changing my approach... missing a race would not be ideal. But it’s not the end of the world.”
Arch-rival Russell, unsurprisingly, insisted a ban would not be “unjust” given the Dutchman’s behaviour. “At the end of the day, that’s why the penalty points are there,” the Mercedes driver said in Montreal.
“If you keep driving recklessly, you will accumulate points and get punished with a race ban. You’ve got it in your own hands and it doesn’t go without risk.
“He was trying to run me off the road... it was just all a bit surprising. I’m not looking for an apology. His actions cost him, and they benefited me. So I should be almost thanking him.
Asked if he believes a ban would change Verstappen’s aggressive approach, Russell added: “I don’t think so. It depends on the circumstances, doesn’t it?
Max Verstappen's 11 penalty points
- 3 points, 2025 Spanish GP – Causing a collision with George Russell (expires 1 June 2026)
- 2 points, 2024 Abu Dhabi GP – Causing a collision with Oscar Piastri (expires 8 December 2025)
- 1 point, 2024 Qatar GP – Driving unnecessarily slowly on a cooldown lap in qualifying (expires 1 December 2025)
- 1 point, 2024 Brazil GP sprint – Being under the minimum VSC delta time (expires 1 November 2025)
- 2 points, 2024 Mexico GP – Forcing Lando Norris off-track (expires 27 October 2025)
- 2 points, 2024 Austrian GP – Causing a collision with Lando Norris (expires 30 June 2025)
(12 points in a 12-month period trigger a race ban)
“When you are going for a championship, it’s slightly different. That’s why I believe he wasn’t intentionally trying to crash into me. He was just trying to get his elbows out and show who’s boss.”
Yet Canadian F1 legend Jacques Villeneuve, the 1997 world champion, believes the prospect of a suspension will trigger a change in approach from the Dutchman this weekend, at the street circuit named after his father, Gilles.
“It has to [change his approach], because you don't drive with the same freedom if you're going to get a race ban,” Villeneuve said.
“It's an odd system. You can be mean and aggressive until you get too many [penalty points]. I don't know if I like the system, but it will put him under pressure and normally, he's OK with pressure. So that shouldn't be an issue.”
Villeneuve actually believes Russell deserved a penalty for the turn-one incident in Spain, which triggered Verstappen’s angry rebuke a few corners later, but acknowledges that the Red Bull star is in the unique position of trying to stay in the championship hunt with a car consistently slower than the pace-setting McLarens ahead.
“He's lost a lot of points with that penalty, finishing 10th, so that's like a DNF, it's only one point,” Villeneuve added, speaking in association with BetVictor Casino. “He knows that he doesn't have the best car.
“To get the results, he has to overdrive or to be on the edge much more than the other drivers. At some point that turns into mistakes or misjudgements, and it makes his championship fight a lot more difficult.”
Oscar Piastri leads the way in the battle between the McLaren teammates, with Lando Norris 10 points behind going into round 10. Verstappen is a further 49 points off the pace. Even at this early stage, nobody has battled back from a larger points-deficit to win the championship.
Yet to his credit, Verstappen is still only in the title race due to his own sheer brilliance and power of will. A mesmerising pole position in Japan and the overtake of the season in Imola set up two brilliant victories.
Both rounds are examples of why, against title race novices such as Piastri and Norris, Verstappen is still very much in the fight. Ferrari’s star duo of Lewis Hamilton and Charles Leclerc are out of the picture.
And at a Montreal track where he has won the last three editions, he will back himself to put it all together when the visor is down on Sunday. Even with all the dark clouds swirling above him.
