Toro Rosso "Contemplating" Tactical Engine Penalty

Toro Rosso chief Franz Tost has said that the team is contemplating to provide each car with four power units, even though each car is only allowed three as of this year.

The more an engine has to work, the more mileage it accumulates, the lesser the performance will be. Therefore adding a fourth power unit could be beneficial, even though you would be penalised by starting at the back of the grid for that particular Grand Prix. A new engine, and thus new power, might compensate, thinks Tost.

"There will be a stage where we'll have to figure out whether it might actually be better to have a new engine and starting at the back," Tost says to Motorsport.com, "instead of driving with a power unit that has done three or four thousand kilometres, after which you lose power every few hundred kilometres." 

This year's rules state that teams can only use three engines instead of four, while also adding another race to the calendar (21). Tost thinks the combination of the two things is outrageous.

"Last year we tried four engines and less races, this year we have less engines and more races. I can only say this rule is ridiculous," the Austrian complained.