George Russell has confirmed he will take a second grid penalty before the end of the season, on top of the one he faces this weekend at the Singapore Grand Prix, after his Mercedes engine failed in the closing stages in Sepang.
Russell retired with a power unit failure in the closing laps of the Bahrain Grand Prix in Malaysia, ending a race in which teammate Kimi Antonelli finished second.
The unit that failed is now being replaced, triggering a grid penalty at Marina Bay, but Russell has revealed that a further change, and another penalty, is now unavoidable later in the campaign.
Speaking to select media including RacingNews365 on Singapore media day, Russell explained that the engine which failed was not actually overdue for retirement.
Asked whether the failure was caused by the power unit being used for too long, the Briton was unequivocal.
"No, the engine wasn't stretched too long," said Russell. "It was the sixth race of the engine, and obviously you have four engines a year, six races per engine when you split it up.
"We actually put that engine in on Sunday in Budapest, so it was actually the sixth race, but minus qualifying and the practice sessions of Budapest."
George Russell reveals Mercedes' engine change delay hope
Russell said Mercedes had been trying to delay a penalty until it could fit an upgraded unit built under the FIA's Additional Development and Upgrade Opportunities mechanism, which the Brackley-based squad qualified for after its engine trailed Red Bull's on the official performance index.
"We were waiting to take the engine penalty with the ADUO update, but obviously, unfortunately, we've had to take it here [in Singapore]," added Russell.
"But with seven races remaining, that's longer than the engines are designed for. Unfortunately, it means I'll be taking another penalty at some point between the next race and the end of the season, so yeah, feels a little bit like one thing after another right now.
"But that's just how the cookie crumbles."
Also interesting:
Join RacingNews365's Ian Parkes, Sam Coop and Nick Golding as they look back on the Bahrain GP in Malaysia, but also look ahead to this weekend's race in Singapore. The confusing and shocking start is a major talking point as is Red Bull's rise.
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