Vettel and Ferrari escape a penalty at Suzuka
Ferrari's concerns about Sebastian Vettel's possibly damaged gearbox in Malaysia have been lifted, and the German driver will be able to approach the Japanese Grand Prix without a penalty.
Following his improbable collision with Lance Stroll during the victory lap of the Malaysian Grand Prix, Sebastian Vettel feared that his gearbox might have been damaged, which would have resulted in a penalty for the race in Japan if it had to be changed.
Ferrari therefore sent the gearbox to its Maranello factory for checks between the Malaysian race and the Japanese one.
Ultimately, the part was not damaged and therefore it will not be necessary for the Scuderia to change it. Vettel thus escapes a five-place grid penalty that could have been detrimental in his fight for the world drivers’ championship after two challenging weekends in Singapore and Malaysia.
The gearbox #Seb5 used in #MalaysiaGP is still available 👍🏼#JapaneseGP pic.twitter.com/TgaqDunXkl
— Scuderia Ferrari (@ScuderiaFerrari) 4 octobre 2017
