Valtteri Bottas has taken a tactical engine penalty for the Russian Grand Prix, meaning he will start at the back of the grid just ahead of Max Verstappen.
Bottas, who started the last race in Italy from the back after taking a new engine, has again replaced his power unit in Russia.
The Finn will therefore start from 16th, ahead of Alfa Romeo’s Antonio Giovinazzi, Williams’ Nicholas Latifi, Ferrari’s Charles Leclerc, and Red Bull’s Verstappen, Giovinazzi taking a gearbox penalty and the latter three also replacing their respective power units like Bottas and taking penalties after exceeding the allocated three engines for the season.
Bottas, who has won the Russian Grand Prix twice – including his first ever F1 win in 2017 – had initially qualified in 7th. He will now attempt to stall the progress of Verstappen for teammate Lewis Hamilton, those two drivers separated by just five points at the top of the championship standings.
