Following Alfa Romeo's acquisition of a number of new power unit components ahead of this weekend, Valtteri Bottas will start Sunday's Formula 1 Austrian Grand Prix from the rear of the grid.
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Two time winner of the Austrian race , Valtteri Bottas was penalized for using a new Ferrari engine, turbocharger, MGU-H, MGU-K, and control electronics before Friday’s first practice at the Red Bull ring. Bottas exceeded each of the FIA imposed season limits for each of the elements, which result in an immediate back-of-the grid penalty for Sunday. A driver must automatically start the grand prix from the back of the field if their grid drop totals more than 15 positions. Bottas’s starting position for the sprint race on Saturday is unaffected by the penalty, which solely pertains to the grand prix on Sunday. With 46 of Alfa Romeo’s 51 points thus far this year, Bottas is presently ranked seventh in the drivers’ standings.
Bottas will begin the sprint race on Saturday from wherever he places in Austrian qualifying on Friday night before dropping to the back of the pack for the grand prix on Sunday. When the Finn won the Saturday sprint race for Mercedes at the Italian Grand Prix last year, the identical procedure was used to push him to the back of the field. It represents yet another setbacks for Bottas, whos was forced to withdraw from the British Grand Prix at Silverstone last weekend due to a gearbox problem, making just his second DNF of the season.
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Troubling issues
Bottas described Alfa Romeo’s ongoing reliability concerns as “not nice” and “very troubling us” during the FIA press conference on Thursday. “It’s not always like one issue, “It’s a few things here and there and different things keep happening. So that means we’ve not been able to score points.” said Bottas.
In addition to Bottas modification, Lando Norris has added a new engine, turbocharger, MGU-H, and MGU-K to his McLaren, but he won’t face any penalties because each of those additions is still within the season’s allotment. The Alfa Romeo driver Zhou Guanyu gets a new control electronics for this weekend, while Charles Leclerc of Ferrari has taken his second energy storage.
