Max Verstappen, Lando Norris and Oscar Piastri could face a potentially huge setback in their world championship battle ahead of this weekend’s Qatar Grand Prix.
Norris believed he had extended his championship lead over his McLaren teammate after finishing second in Sunday’s Las Vegas Grand Prix.
However, both McLaren cars were disqualified from the race due to a technical infringement.
As a result, Norris now sits just 24 points ahead of Piastri and reigning world champion Verstappen, with a maximum of 58 points still available across the two remaining race weekends.
Qatar will host both a sprint race and a full Grand Prix this weekend before the season concludes in Abu Dhabi on December 7.
One factor that could have a decisive impact on who becomes world champion is whether any of the trio are forced to take a grid penalty.
Max Verstappen is a four-time world champion (Image: Getty)
They are most commonly issued when a driver exceeds their permitted number of power unit components or changes their gearbox before the end of its mandatory cycle.
As per the BBC, both McLaren drivers and Verstappen would receive a grid penalty if they were to change their engine.
Drivers are given an allocation of four power units per season and Verstappen has already exceeded his limit.
After multiple breaches of engine component regulations, he was forced to start the Brazilian Grand Prix from the pit lane.
Teams do not typically reveal plans about engine or gearbox changes in advance and with just two races left, they would only make the change if it was necessary.
When teams opt to take a penalty, they tend to do so at circuits where overtaking is more straightforward, as Red Bull demonstrated in Brazil.
Max Verstappen won Sunday’s Las Vegas Grand Prix (Image: Getty)
That will not be the case this weekend, with Qatar one of the more difficult circuits to overtake on, with organisers shortening the DRS zone on the main straight for last year’s race.
There will be another change for this year’s race, with Pirelli implementing a mandatory two-stop rule by limiting each set of tyres to a maximum of 25 laps per stint for the 57-lap Grand Prix.
As the sprint race is only 19 laps, the restriction will not affect the action on Saturday.
Norris remains the strong favourite to win a maiden world title and he can secure the crown in Qatar if he scores two more points than both Piastri and Verstappen.
After the cold track temperatures in Las Vegas, conditions in which the McLaren does not perform as well in, the team will be boosted by the high-speed nature of the Lusail circuit.
However, Verstappen will be confident he can keep his hopes alive and move closer to securing a record-breaking fifth consecutive championship.
At present, only the legendary Michael Schumacher has ever won five titles in a row.
Meanwhile, Piastri, who recorded 14 podiums and seven wins in the first 16 races, will be hoping to halt his recent slump in form and stay in the fight heading into Abu Dhabi.
