George Russell will start from the last position in the upcoming Singapore Grand Prix in Formula 1. The Mercedes driver will be sanctioned for a forced change of the drive system, Sky Sports reports.
The decision comes at an unpleasant moment for the British driver, who is already in a difficult situation in the battle for the top positions in the championship. In the previous round of the season, held in Sepang, Russell failed to finish the race, which further increased the gap between him and his teammate Andrea Kimi Antonelli.
After the last race, the Briton is 84 points behind Antonelli, who leads the standings. There are still seven rounds left in the season, which leaves room for change, but any loss of points could now be significant.
The new drivetrain will be fitted to Russell's car for Friday's practice session in Singapore. It will be followed by sprint qualifying, and the change will result in an automatic penalty for the Briton.
This will be the fifth drivetrain used by Russell this season. As the limit has been exceeded, the driver will have to bear the penalty, which will send him to the last grid position.
Mercedes' initial plan was to introduce the new component, including the expected technical upgrade, later this month during the US Grand Prix. However, the German team has decided to accelerate the program and implement the changes in Singapore.
In this way, Mercedes hopes to gain time in the development of the car and at the same time avoid the need for additional penalties in future races.
Russell is not the only driver from the team who has already been through a similar situation. Andrea Kimi Antonelli received his fifth engine during the Italian Grand Prix in Monza and also had to start from the back of the column.
However, the Italian managed to turn a difficult starting position into an impressive result. Antonelli had a strong race and ultimately achieved victory, proving that a penalty for changing a drive system does not automatically mean dropping out of the battle for the top positions.
Russell now faces a similar challenge. The Mercedes driver will need to make up as many positions as possible during the race weekend in Singapore if he wants to reduce his gap in the general classification.
At the same time, attention will also be focused on the performance of Antonelli, who will have the opportunity to increase his championship lead with another strong result.