F1 star faces tough penalty before Belgian GP after breaking a big rule, making a tough season even harder
Before the Belgian Grand Prix, the FIA had already given power unit penalties to three top Formula 1 drivers. Now, a former world champion has faced the same trouble, making his tough season even harder.
Red Bull went over the limit on the Internal Combustion Engine (ICE), turbocharger, and exhaust parts for Isaac Hadjar’s car. This means he gets a 30-place penalty and will start at the back of the grid.
Lando Norris got a 10-place grid penalty this weekend because McLaren put a new power electronics unit in his car to fix recent reliability problems. Lance Stroll also got a similar penalty.
Now, Stroll’s teammate, Fernando Alonso, has been hit with the same kind of penalty. Alonso will start at the back of the grid because his car got new energy store (ES), control electronics (PU-CE), and ancillary components (PU-ANC), going over his allowed parts for the season.
According to the rules, the first time a driver goes over on any part, they get a 10-place penalty. The second and later times lead to 5-place drops. If a driver’s penalty adds up to more than 15 places, they have to start at the back no matter what.
This is just another setback in a very difficult season for the two-time world champion, who has failed to finish four races with Aston Martin. Alonso scored Aston Martin’s only point this year by finishing 10th in Monaco, while his teammate Stroll hasn’t scored any points, with 15th in Canada as his best finish.
With Alonso starting at the back, it looks like he’ll have a tough, long day on the track. Unless there’s a big surprise or lots of other drivers retire, he’ll probably finish the race without scoring points again.