Red Bull reveal Max Verstappen contingency plan as F1 ban looms

Red Bull will temporarily promote either Isack Hadjar of Liam Lawson in the event Max Verstappen is handed a one-round suspension from the F1 season. The Milton Keynes squad also confirmed to RacingNews365 that current reserve driver Ayumu Iwasa will deputise for at Racing Bulls in that scenario. Arvid Lindblad, who may still be granted an FIA super licence exemption, would therefore not make his F1 debut even if he is given special dispensation by the motorsport governing body. Despite not turning 18 until August, the 17-year-old has procured enough super licence points to be considered, which will happen this week at the World Motor Sport Council meeting in Macau. However, Lindblad may be called up as the reserve driver for the weekend, that would be along with his usual F2 duties if it falls on a weekend in which the junior category is racing, but this has yet to be established. Verstappen is on the cusp of an F1 ban following the Spanish Grand Prix, where he earned three penalty points on his own super licence for crashing into George Russell. That takes the four-time F1 drivers' champion to 11 of the permitted 12 over a 12-month period. He does not have any points removed until after the Austrian Grand Prix, in two rounds' time. Even then, he must wait until October for further points to be removed, on account of the flurry he received due to his late-season clashes with Lando Norris last term.