Formula 1: Valtteri Bottas penalized ahead of Styrian Grand Prix

Valtteri Bottas has been issued a three-position grid penalty ahead of Sunday’s Formula 1 race at the Red Bull Ring due to a practice incident.

Mercedes’ Valtteri Bottas will start Sunday’s Styrian Grand Prix at the Red Bull Ring from no higher than fourth place, as he has been penalized ahead of the eighth race of the 2021 Formula 1 season.

Bottas has been given a three-position grid penalty ahead of this 71-lap race around the 10-turn, 2.683-mile (4.318-kilometer) road course in Spielberg, Styria, Austria.

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This penalty comes as a result of a spin Bottas had in the pits after putting on a set of hard tires during the second free practice session of the weekend.

Bottas accelerated away from his pit box and lost control of his car.

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After the spin, his car came to a stop near McLaren personnel. The McLaren team helped Bottas get pointed back in the right direction, but they were heard complaining to the FIA over the radio that the spin was “absolutely ridiculous” and that Bottas “could have taken our guys out”.

Bottas also had two penalty points added to his license as a result of this “dangerous driving” infraction. These two points are the only two points currently on his license. Here is what the stewards had to say about the matter.

"“When [Bottas] 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 [Bottas] 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 had initially stated that he would be surprised if he ended up being penalized for the spin.

"“I would be surprised if there is [any penalty]. It’s a normal mistake, it happens, but yes, I’m sure they’ll understand what happened. I spun. We tried something different getting out from the box and yes, there were some variables to what we normally do with the wheelspin and that’s why I spun.”"

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Tune in to ESPN at 9:00 a.m. ET on Sunday, June 27 for the live broadcast of the Styrian Grand Prix from the Red Bull Ring.

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