Vettel is likely to start from the back of the grid on Sunday
As engine penalties pile up towards the end of the season, it will be Sebastian Vettel's turn to start (probably) at the back of the grid in Austin.
In the last nine Grand Prix races, Sebastian Vettel has only scored five meager points (his Hungarian podium being revoked). If the German wants to find the top ten that has eluded him since Belgium, where the race never started, he will have to go for it this weekend.
Aston Martin will indeed change several engine components of car number five. We are heading towards a complicated weekend, we will change the engine which implies a penalty,” explained Sebastian Vettel at a press conference on Thursday. “We will see what will be possible to do from our starting position but I believe we can be strong here. Overtaking is possible in Austin so it is a good place for this kind of change. I hope we will have an entertaining Sunday and that we will be back in the race.”
The extent of the penalty for the German driver remains to be determined since Aston Martin has not yet communicated the number of parts to be changed, but starting at the back of the grid seems like the most likely option.
Vettel is not the first driver to suffer such a penalty this season as both Ferraris, the Mercedes, and Verstappen’s Red Bull have already had to change their respective engines.
