Ricciardo penalty concerns Lauda

Daniel Ricciardo's grid penalty at the Australian Grand Prix suggests Formula 1 is "going back in the wrong direction" according to Mercedes non-executive chairman Niki Lauda. The Red Bull driver was given a three-place grid drop for speeding under red flags in Friday's practice.

The second practice session at Albert Park was halted when a timing wire came loose on the pit straight.

Ricciardo was on a flying lap at the time, but saw his effort curtailed and he made his way back to the garage.

However, the FIA later revealed that Ricciardo had failed to hit the minimum time to move through the sectors, despite slowing by over 150 km/h.

The sanction ought to have carried a five-place penalty, but the FIA suggested they had shown leniency.

Ricciardo fought his way back to fourth place from eighth on the grid, but Lauda believes the sanction is a bad sign of things to come.

"If the FIA and Charlie Whiting are already starting like this, then Formula 1 is going back in the wrong direction," Lauda told Austrian television station ORF.

"I would have given him a different penalty, and then he would have been in the front, where he belongs, and all the Australians would have enjoyed the race more."

Grid penalties were a controversial factor last season as teams struggled to get to grips with the four-engine limit.

That limit has now been cut to three engines, which could cause more chaos, although the penalty system has been overhauled in an attempt to simplify it.

While he was chasing Kimi Raikkonen for the final podium spot on Sunday, Ricciardo set the fastest lap of the race, hinting that Red Bull's pre-season billing as title challengers is accurate.