Ocon given grid penalty following radio confusion

Force India's Esteban Ocon has been given a three-place grid penalty at the Japanese Grand Prix for failing to slow down for red flags.

The stewards said that Ocon did slow down as required but then he sped up again after the driver got confused by some beeps that he hard on his car's radio.

"The driver informed the stewards, and the telemetry showed, that he had slowed down for the red flags," the stewards said. "However, after Turn 4, he heard some beeps on his radio that suggested that he was too slow and sped up briefly to regularize his speed.

"In doing so, he briefly exceeded the delta by a maximum of -1.68 over three mini-sectors. As a result, he had failed to maintain the speed delta required under the regulations resulting in an infringement.

"He acknowledged the infringement and attributed it to the confusion caused by the beeps and the system currently being used by the team in such situations. In the end, given the importance of observance of the speed restricions while red flags are being shown and recognising the limited extent of the breach, we decided to impose the above penalty."

Ocon was also given two points on his licences, his first of the year.

The Frenchman will now start the race in 11th, and this also has an effect on Sebastian Vettel, who has now been promoted from ninth to eighth for the race tomorrow.