Austin penalty puts Grosjean on the brink of race ban

Romain Grosjean has edged dangerously close to a one-race ban after his collision with Charles Leclerc in Austin resulted in a grid drop and one licence penalty point for the Haas driver.

Grosjean hit the Monegasque's Sauber at the entry to Turn 12 on the opening lap of the US Grand Prix, spinning his rival around while also damaging the front suspension of his Haas, forcing his car into retirement two laps later.

The stewards' subsequent investigation into the incident put Grosjean at fault, the Frenchman receiving a three-place grid penalty for next weekend's Mexican Grand Prix and one penalty point on his licence.

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The latter boosts Grosjean's tally to 10 points in 12 months, or two points short of an outright one-race suspension, meaning he'll absolutely have to be on his best behavior in Mexico.

"There was a lot of action going on, I was fighting with Charles and Esteban (Ocon), I got to turn 12 and I braked early because I was behind them," explained Grosjean.

"I didn’t want to take much risk, but I ended up in the dirty air and I couldn’t stop the car.

"I tried to avoid the contact as much as I could, but Charles was trying to get a good exit and I hit him.

"I feel sorry for Charles and I’m frustrated for the team. This being our home race, we wanted to do well. It’s not been a great afternoon"

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