Daniel Ricciardo will start from the back of the grid at the Turkish Grand Prix after McLaren opted to take a strategic penalty to bring new Mercedes Formula 1 engine components into his pool.
Ricciardo had a disappointing qualifying result at Istanbul Park as he was eliminated in the opening segment after struggling on slicks as the track’s remaining damp spots dried.
He was only due to start 15th so as Mercedes has some engine reliability concerns, McLaren has opted to play it safe and drop Ricciardo five places on the grid to introduce a range of new power unit elements.
McLaren has stopped short of a full suite of new components though as Ricciardo will only have a new internal combustion engine, turbocharger, MGU-H and exhaust system.
Ricciardo is the third driver to take a grid penalty in Turkey.
He will start behind Carlos Sainz who also has a back-of-the-grid penalty for Ferrari engine changes.
McLaren holds a slender 17.5 point advantage over Ferrari in its battle for third place in the constructors’ championship.
Ricciardo’s team-mate Lando Norris will start seventh while Charles Leclerc is starting from third place in his Ferrari.
World championship leader Lewis Hamilton qualified fastest but will start 11th after a 10-place grid penalty for taking a new internal combustion engine.
