18/09/2014
NEWS STORY
Heading in to this weekend's Singapore Grand Prix, nine drivers are staring down the barrel of potential grid penalties.
With each driver allowed just five components of their engine each season, several have already reached that number after Daniil Kvyat became the first driver penalised for an out of sequence change in Italy under the overly complicated rules.
Under the regulations the 'power unit' comprises the Internal Combustion Engine (ICE), Motor Generator Unit -Kinetic (MGU-K) and -Heat (MGU-H), Turbo Charger (TC), Energy Store (ES) and Control Electronics (EC). Teams opting to use a sixth of any component will incur a 10-place penalty for the first change, and a further 5-place penalty for subsequent changes. The process is repeated if teams then opt for a seventh of any component and so on, and means almost all drivers will face an engine-related grid penalty this year.
Pastor Maldonado is the man most at risk of being penalised this weekend. Having already used five ICE, TC, MGU-K and MGU-H components any issues would impact him heavily around the Marina Bay circuit, where overtaking is difficult. Teammate Romain Grosjean is on his fifth turbo.
Both Ferrari drivers have used five ICEs and CEs, while Kimi Raikkonen has also used a fifth MGU-H.
The Ferrari-powered Marussia team is also at risk of a penalty, which would be carried over to subsequent races should the full penalty not apply this race (which would effectively mean either Marussia driver would carry a penalty at each race for the remainder of the season), Jules Bianchi and Max Chilton having used five ICEs, TCs and MGU-Hs. Bianchi has also used five CEs.
Elsewhere, reigning world champion Sebastian Vettel has used five ICEs, while Adrian Sutil has also used a fifth TC and MGU-H. Jean-Eric Vergne has used five MGU-Ks, as had Kvyat, who would receive just a five-place penalty should Toro Rosso choose to replace any component of his engine bar the ICE.
Full details of each drivers' power unit use prior to this weekend, here.
Check out our Thursday gallery, here.
Mat Coch