Marcus Ericsson has been handed a three-place grid penalty for blocking Nico Hulkenberg during qualifying for the Italian Grand Prix.
The Sauber driver was pictured ahead of Hulkenberg entering Parabolica during Q1, with the German complaining over team radio that he had been impeded. The FIA investigated the incident after qualifying and handed Ericsson a three-place grid penalty.
Ericsson had originally qualified in tenth place after an impressive performance in Q2, but the penalty will drop him down to 12th position. The FIA applies grid penalties without moving drivers up a position until all penalties have been applied, leaving gaps on the grid.
The three-place penalty demotes Ericsson to 13th place, but with Carlos Sainz dropping 25 places from an original 13th due to his own grid penalty, Ericsson drops in to a vacant slot and then benefits when Pastor Maldonado and Felipe Nasr ahead of him are promoted a position as the final grid is closed up.
Ericsson also received two penalty points for the incident, which leaves him with seven in the last 12 months. If a driver reaches 12 penalty points within a year he will be handed an automatic one-race ban.
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