Mercedes driver Valtteri Bottas handed three-place grid drop for "dangerous driving in the pit lane"

Valtteri Bottas spins in the pitlane in practice for the Styrian GP — Photo: © LAT Images

Styrian Grand Prix

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Bottas handed three-place grid drop for "dangerous driving in the pit lane"

The Mercedes driver lost the rear of his car as he left his pit box

Ian Parkes

Friday 25 June 2021 18:06 Updated: 18:16

Valtteri Bottas has been handed a three-place grid penalty by the stewards for what has been deemed as 'dangerous driving in the pit lane' during practice for the Styrian Grand Prix.

The Mercedes driver had taken on a set of hard tyres during FP2 and as he pulled away from his pit box, he lost the rear end of his W12.

Forced to brake sharply, Bottas almost collided with the pit wall before coming to rest to one side of McLaren's stunned pit crew who helped straighten the Finn's car.

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Despite the assistance provided by McLaren, team manager Paul James made a point of voicing his concern to FIA race director Michael Masi in the aftermath of the incident.

"Michael, that was absolutely ridiculous," said James. "He could have taken our guys out there, and the pit wall."

Bottas later intriguingly conceded "to trying something different" but due to "variables" it resulted in the spin in such an unusual area.

After meeting with the stewards to explain what transpired, Bottas has been hit hard.

A stewards' statement read: "The stewards heard from the driver of car 77 [Valtteri Bottas] and team representatives and reviewed video evidence.

"When BOT pulled away from his designated pit stop position, he lost control of the car when he turned into the fast lane. He oversteered, spun and came to a stop across the fast lane near the McLaren pits.

"During the hearing, BOT stated that in the past they have been losing time in the pit departure. So they tried something new, which was to leave in second gear.

"As a result, the wheel spin was much higher and the result unexpected. Therefore, he didn’t manage to control the car properly into the fast lane.

"This has to be considered as potentially dangerous driving, especially as personnel were around in the pit lane."

Bottas has also been handed two points on his licence, his first in a 12-month period.