F1 News

Nico Hulkenberg to start to Spanish Grand Prix from the pit lane

Nico Hulkenberg to start to Spanish Grand Prix from the pit lane

12-05-2019 11:19 Last update: 12:14
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Nico Hulkenberg will start the Spanish Grand Prix from the pitlane after the stewards penalized him for changing his front wing specification during Q1. The rules state that after a car leaves the pits in Q1 “no parts may be added, removed or replaced” to its aerodynamic set-up. 

During qualifying, Hulkenberg suffered damage to his front wing and the team only had the old specification to replace it with. 

FIA technical delegate Jo Bauer said that “The stewards reviewed the evidence from the technical delegate and sought clarification from the team sporting director.

"The sporting director advised that the team’s opinion was that the front wing main plane was ‘similar’ to the one it replaced, however, the team was willing to accept the view of the FIA technical delegate that the front wing is of a different specification from the one used during qualifying.

“Accordingly, the stewards determine that the competitor is required to start the race from the pit lane.”

The penalty means that both Renault drivers have been docked grid positions after Daniel Ricciardo was given a three-place grid penalty for changing his engine.