George Russell has confirmed he will serve a five-place grid penalty at this weekend's Sao Paulo Grand Prix, meaning he will start no higher than sixth on the grid on Sunday.
The penalty comes after a new internal combustion engine was fitted to his Mercedes car, pushing him over his annual allowance of engine components for the season. Formula One rules dictate that a grid penalty is automatic every time a driver uses engine parts beyond the permitted number per year. A first offence carries a 10-place drop, with subsequent five-place penalties for any further new parts.
Russell's Reaction to the Penalty
Russell had already exceeded his allowance for internal combustion engines this year and served a 10-place penalty earlier in the season. The new engine added to his pool for this weekend's action at Interlagos means a five-place drop this time.
The stewards confirmed the punishment will be served this weekend. Before the FIA published that document, Russell had informed fans of what was coming in a video posted on his Mercedes team's social media channels.
In it, the Brit said: "We always had to take a grid penalty at some point between Singapore and the end of the season. We felt like this was a good place to take it. Lewis [Hamilton] had a big grid penalty here a number of years ago [in 2021] and did pretty well. Five places doesn't seem that bad and we'll try to come back through."
Hamilton's 2021 Example
The Hamilton example he referred to happened back when the rules of sprint races were different to what happens today. In 2021, the result of a sprint race was used to set the grid for the Grand Prix the next day, rather than the current format which features separate qualifying sessions for each race.
Back then, Hamilton started 20th on the grid because he was disqualified from sprint qualifying, but recovered to fifth in the shorter race and went on to win on the Sunday. That is no longer a route to success since F1 changed its sprint rules.
In any case, the format is not being used at all this weekend – it's the first time Interlagos has not hosted a sprint race since it was introduced back in that 2021 season. Yet, Hamilton's feat does prove that overtaking is possible at the Sao Paulo circuit.
Looking Ahead for Mercedes
Russell needs that to be the case to limit the damage done by his grid penalty. There is every chance it will put him behind some slower cars on the grid on Sunday, but even a much faster Mercedes might struggle to get by them on circuits where there obvious overtaking opportunities are few or none.
Overtaking is more possible here than it is in, for example, Las Vegas next time out. And there remain uncertainties over whether or not the final two rounds in Qatar and Abu Dhabi will even go ahead, given ongoing tensions and attacks in the Middle East, so it is hard for Mercedes to plan ahead.
Russell had originally planned to take the grid penalty whenever Mercedes' upgraded engine became available. The Silver Arrows have delayed its introduction as they want to make sure it will be ready and able to provide an obvious performance boost without compromising reliability, and that means it may not appear this season.
