Finnish Valtteri Bottas (Mercedes) will penalize five positions on the starting grid of the Formula 1 United States GP this Sunday for changing the combustion engine of your car. This will be the sixth combustion engine that it mounts Valtteri throughout the year, exceeding the four allowed by two, being the driver who has placed the most combustion chambers in his car.
His team confirmed that the winner of the previous calendar appointment, the Turkish GP, you have changed that part of your car for the sixth time, and this could be a sign of serious problems for Mercedes with this element, something that could be key in the fight for the title. Hamilton mounted his fourth combustion engine in Turkey, in the absence of 6 races, and if he also suffers reliability problems and places a new one in any of the following appointments, he will penalize against Verstappen.
This is the third engine change for Bottas in the last 5 races. He already put his fourth combustion engine (ICE) on Monza, and in Sochi He changed all the elements of the power unit, thus mounting the fifth ICE of the year. Now, just two dates later, he rides the 6th of the year. According to regulations, mounting the fourth ICE entailed a penalty of 10 positions, but from there, the new ICE that are mounted carry 5 penalty positions, which will fall to Bottas in this F1 United States GP.
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For now, the change in this career will mean for Bottas a five-position penalty compared to the one he achieved this Saturday in qualifying for the race, something that can also be very important in the face of the title fight. Mercedes starts as a favorite in Austin So what Bottas not being able to start from the top positions can complicate your task of subtracting points from Verstappen to help Hamilton.
The German will also be relegated on the grid due to changes in their vehicles Sebastian vettel (Aston Martin) and the British George Russell (Williams), also with Mercedes engine.