Where will Hamilton start from the back? 'He might just take a new engine there'

Max Verstappen 's heavy crash at Silverstone, which resulted in the loss of his brand new Honda engine, forced the Red Bull Racing driver to take a grid penalty somewhere. His team opted to do so at the Russian Grand Prix, a decision that worked out significantly in Verstappen's favour. It now seems increasingly likely that Lewis Hamilton will have to do the same. But which race weekend will Mercedes choose to take the penalty?

There are mixed signals coming from the Mercedes pit box: sometimes team principal Toto Wolff states that Hamilton probably needs a new engine, other times it might not be necessary after all. However, it seems that even Mercedes do not want to risk ending the season with the same engine pool.

Engine change likely for Hamilton

The scenario is also being discussed by analysts at Formula 1 Café. Will Mercedes perform an engine change in the upcoming races? "Bottas will throw in three or so," it sounds laughingly.

"When is Lewis' turn with his new engine? Are they going to swap it in Turkey?", says pit reporter Jack Plooij. The chances are considerable that Mercedes are not prepared to take the risk with their current engine pool. "It's almost becoming a kind of reliability championship", says Robert Doornbos.

Presenter Rob Kamphues adds: "Isn't it true that after four races the Mercedes engine loses power in a massive way, and that's the reason why Bottas took an extra engine?" According to Doornbos, however, Mercedes is not the only team with that problem. "They all have that to some extent. If you do seven or eight weekends with an engine you can't keep going at full speed," Doornbos concludes.