PlanetF1

Kobayash slapped with a grid slot penalty

Saturday 31-July-2010 16:14

Kamui Kobayashi has been handed a five-grid slot penalty for failing to head to the FIA's weigh-in when called during qualifying.

The Sauber driver was called in to the weighing station at the end of the afternoon's first qualifying segment. However, instead of paying attention to the red light, he continued through to his team's garage.

As a result, an already bad afternoon for Kobayashi, who for only the third time this season failed to make it through Q1, became an even worse one.

"I am very disappointed. We have done a lot of set-up changes since we arrived here, but still I am not happy," said the Japanese driver, who will line-up P23 on Sunday's Hungarian grid.

"To me the car feels strange, different from what I'm used to, and I don't have any grip. So the situation was quite difficult for me anyway, and then the team was over-optimistic sending me out on the harder tyres for my second run in Q1.

"I believe on the softer compound I would have managed to get at least to Q2. However, mistakes happen. I obviously went past a red light in the pit lane and missed going to the FIA scales. I just didn't see it."