Lewis Hamilton Might Lose 20 Grid Places in Belgium Race
Giancarlo Perlas August 24, 2016
Lewis Hamilton is in danger of losing his score-advantage over his teammate Nico Rosberg this Sunday’s Formula 1 Belgian Grand Prix. The reigning F1 world champion will likely suffer at least a 20-grid penalty in the race.
According to BBC, Hamilton already exceeded the use of some of his allowable engine tokens for the season. Due to the continuous engine-related woes he has been encountering, new components have to be installed in his Silver Arrow’s power unit.
The source said F1 drivers are only allowed to use a maximum of five out of the six parts of an engine. Going beyond that would mean a grid penalty.
So far, Hamilton used up all the tokens for the turbocharger and the MGU-H of his car’s turbo hybrid engine. It should be noted that the MGU-H is the electric motor which recovers energy from the turbo. That would mean that using at least one of them would drive Hamilton back 10 places in the grid. So if the two have to be replaced, he would get a total of 20-place grid penalty.
However, clarification is needed regarding the matter. The report pointed out that since there are only 22 cars competing on the grid, the sanction for Hamilton can only go as far as that. Therefore, to maximize the advantage of Mercedes despite the penalty, they may elect to install parts other than the two required components in Hamilton’s car.
Currently, Hamilton already used three each of the MGU-K, internal combustion engine, control electronics and energy store.
