Albon to take new engine after FP3 shunt

Alexander Albon will take a new Honda engine for the Chinese Grand Prix after his heavy crash during FP3 on Saturday.

The Toro Rosso driver lost control on the exit of the final corner and pitched his car into a spin and hit the barriers heavily during the final practice session.

Honda F1 boss Toyoharu Tanabe revealed that the Anglo-Thai driver will use a new engine for the race while Honda will evaluate the old unit back at the manufacturer's Suzuka base.

"We are all relieved that Alex is fine after his FP3 crash," Tanabe said.

"As a result of the accident, we are changing the PU and sending the one that was in the car at the time of the crash back to Sakura for a full check.

"At the moment, we do not know the full extent of the possible damage to the various PU elements."

Albon admitted after the crash he was too eager on the throttle pedal in the search for laptime.

"It's something I've been doing the run before and the day before as well. The line itself was fine, just a bit too much throttle on the AstroTurf," he explained.

"You always get one snap, it's quite normal on the astro over there. But it snapped, and then it snapped the other way. Once you get the tankslapper, you're kind of a passenger. I was hoping it snap left to spin me onto the circuit, but it went right into the wall."