Penalties for Fernando Alonso and Marcus Ericsson at Spa
Penalties for mechanical changes are multiplying at Spa-Francorchamps: after Lewis Hamilton, Fernando Alonso and Marcus Ericsson will also find themselves at the end of the grid.
Last year, we can recall that the two McLaren drivers, Fernando Alonso and Jenson Button, had almost changed the entirety of their car components, thus setting a new record for the number of penalty positions: Fernando Alonso had received 55 penalty positions while Jenson Button had “only” 50, totaling 105 for the team.
IF the record is not expected to fall this year, Fernando Alonso is set for at least 35 places down due to new problems encountered during the first practice session this Friday morning, namely a water leak from his energy recovery system. He is therefore assured of starting last on the grid.
Fernando’s session is done. After an inspection the decision has been taken to change his power unit. #BelgianGP
— McLaren (@McLarenF1) August 26
He should find his former teammate, Lewis Hamilton, on the last row. Indeed, after the 15 places this morning, Mercedes decided to change his engine again, allowing them to rebuild a stock of available parts until the end of the season. The goal is to penalize only on one weekend (in this case, 30 places on the grid) and not on multiple weekends in order to better defend their chances in the championship.
The latest penalty was given to Sauber’s driver Marcus Ericsson, who was forced to use his sixth turbo of the year. This results in a 10-place grid penalty.
From our special correspondent in Spa-Francorchamps
