Nico Hulkenberg will enter Azerbaijan Grand Prix qualifying with a five-place grid penalty after the Renault Formula 1 team was forced to change the gearbox on his car.
According to article 23.5a of Formula 1’s sporting regulations, a gearbox must be used in six consecutive races before it is permitted to be changed.
Hulkenberg reported an issue with the rear of the car in the closing stages of FP3. The FIA has confirmed that the team was forced to change the gearbox as a result. With this change during only the fourth race of 2018, the penalty has been triggered.
Renault’s Carlos Sainz Jr finished 16th in FP3, while Hulkenberg was 17th. Neither managed to record a representative qualifying simulation run due to the timing of Hulkenberg’s issue relative to the team’s run plan as well as a late red flag which compromised Sainz.
Entering this weekend, Hulkenberg sits joint sixth in the drivers’ championship having scored points in all three races so far.
In qualifying, he is looking to continue a streak of seven consecutive seventh-place results. Hulkenberg has also out-qualified his team-mate in the past 27 races, in a run dating back to the 2016 US Grand Prix.
