Vettel slapped with Austria grid penalty
Vettel slapped with Austria grid penalty
Sebastian Vettel has been hit with a three-place grid penalty for the Austrian Grand Prix for blocking Carlos Sainz Jr in Q2. The Ferrari man qualified third behind pole-sitter Valtteri Bottas and Lewis Hamilton, but will start six, a move that will delight the Silver Arrows.
Sainz was forced to take to the run-off area on a flying lap as Vettel was moving slowly on the racing line out of turn one, although the Renault man was still able to get into the top-10 shootout on a later lap.
Pese a que no es un bloqueo agresivo, Vettel se mantiene lentamente en la línea de carrera. Sainz, en vuelta rápida, lo tuvo que esquivar.
La sanción de 3 puestos está bien puesta.
???? @F1 @motorlat pic.twitter.com/OEvyNCaEAh — Stefania Bruera (@stefifm) June 30, 2018
The Spaniard seemed happy for Vettel to go unpunished, telling Sky Sports: "I don't want to put too much blame on Sebastian. It has happened to me that the engineer does tell you a driver is approaching and you don't see in your mirror. It's not always the drivers fault."
Vettel also professed his innocence in the post-qualifying press conference: "I couldn't see him. I wasn't told on the radio, so I can only apologise to him.
"Obviously, there was no intention. I was looking down the straight and then I turned around, Turn One, I was done with my lap and just wanted to make sure – and then when I was looking, there was again nothing to see after Turn One, which obviously, which was clear because in the replay I saw then that he was side-by-side."
The stewards took a dim view in their assessment, however, and a statement read: "Notwithstanding the absence of a radio call, the driver of car 5 [Vettel], being aware of the issue of rear vision with his mirrors, should not have been so slow and on the racing line, during a slowdown lap in qualification.
"The penalty of a drop of 3 grid positions is consistent with all other similar incidents."
Vettel's drop promotes team-mate Kimi Raikkonen, Red Bull's Max Verstappen and the Haas of Romain Grosjean up a place.
Change your timezone:
Latest News
F1 giants announce name change with IMMEDIATE effect
- 39 minutes ago
Horner admits Red Bull at MAJOR disadvantage with new rules
- 1 hour ago
Horner reveals 'unhuman' Verstappen secret
- 2 hours ago
Sainz manager speaks out on 'game playing' over contract
- 3 hours ago
EXCLUSIVE: World champion reveals 'logical' winning F1 Hamilton combination
- Today 17:57
Why F1's RADICAL proposed points change is a positive step
- Today 15:57
F1 Standings
Drivers
- Oliver Bearman
- Charles Leclerc
- Carlos Sainz
- Lando Norris
- Oscar Piastri
- Pierre Gasly
- Esteban Ocon
- Sergio Pérez
- Max Verstappen
- Alexander Albon
- Logan Sargeant
- Lewis Hamilton
- George Russell
- Nico Hülkenberg
- Kevin Magnussen
- Fernando Alonso
- Lance Stroll
- Valtteri Bottas
- Zhou Guanyu
- Daniel Ricciardo
- Yuki Tsunoda
Races
- Gulf Air Grand Prix of Bahrain 2024
- Saudi Arabian Grand Prix 2024
- Grand Prix of Australia 2024
- MSC Cruises Grand Prix of Japan 2024
- Grand Prix of China 2024
- Miami Grand Prix 2024
- Gran Premio dell'Emilia Romagna 2024
- Grand Prix of Monaco 2024
- Grand Prix du Canada 2024
- Gran Premio de España 2024
- Grand Prix of Austria 2024
- Grand Prix of Great Britain 2024
- Grand Prix of Hungary 2024
- Grand Prix of Belgium 2024
- Heineken Dutch Grand Prix 2024
- Grand Prix of Italy 2024
- Grand Prix of Azerbaijan 2024
- Grand Prix of Singapore 2024
- Grand Prix of the United States 2024
- Gran Premio de la Ciudad de Mexico 2024
- Grande Prêmio de São Paulo 2024
- Heineken Silver Las Vegas Grand Prix 2024
- Qatar Grand Prix 2024
- Grand Prix of Abu Dhabi 2024
About GPFans
GPFans is a multi-platform, multi-language brand dedicated to Formula One coverage. We bring you all the ins and outs of the sport, 24/7, everything from up-to-the-minute news and features to the latest viral stories and clips.We believe that a new generation of exciting, outspoken drivers will make F1 more popular than ever before, and we want to give our users access to as much of their heroes as possible, on and off the track. From Lewis Hamilton to Max Verstappen, Daniel Ricciardo to Sebastian Vettel, we provide in-depth analysis of every every Grand Prix in the season, from Australia to Abu Dhabi.
With Formula One under the new ownership of Liberty Media, how the sport is being covered is evolving, and GPFans will look to be at the heart of this progression into new media, as one of the fastest-growing sites covering the king of motorsports.
Follow us on your favorite social media channel
Corporate & Media
Innovatieweg 20C7007 CD, Doetinchem, Netherlands
+31645516860