Sainz hit with three-place grid penalty
Carlos Sainz has been awarded a drop of three places on the grid after he was found to have impeded Felipe Massa in qualifying.
The incident occurred in Q2 when Massa began a hot lap only to approach a slow Sainz at Turn 2.
The Spaniard tried to move out of the way but Massa had to avoid the Toro Rosso driver by running slightly wide at the apex, losing time in the process.
The stewards looked at the incident after the session and concluded Sainz had blocked the Brazilian.
Sainz managed to qualify 13th on the grid for tomorrow’s race, but with the penalty will drop to 16th.
However, with Romain Grosjean already carrying a five-place grid penalty for a gearbox change it is likely Sainz will be pushed up a place to 15th.
The 21-year-old has also been issued with two penalty points on his F1 super license, drivers are allowed up to 12 within a year before they are handed a one race ban.