Austrian GP grid: Why Rosberg starts sixth
The FIA has confirmed that Nico Rosberg will only move down to sixth place on the grid for the Austrian Grand Prix, despite his gearbox change penalty.
The German qualified second at the Red Bull Ring and would normally have dropped to seventh place.
However, the way that the FIA makes up the grid in the wake of multiple penalties means he has only lost four places because of Sebastian Vettel's gearbox replacement.
With penalties applied in the orders that they are earned, the FIA first moves Vettel down from fourth place to ninth place.
Then, Rosberg is moved down from second place to seventh place.
And it is only when all the penalties are applied – which includes the yellow flag punishments for Jolyon Palmer, Felipe Nasr and Rio Haryanto – that the grid is closed up.
So with Vettel unable to take up his fourth slot, the positions behind third are closed up – moving Rosberg up from seventh to sixth.
| Driver | |
|---|---|
| 01 |  L. Hamilton |
| 02 |  N. Hülkenberg |
| 03 |  J. Button |
| 04 |  K. Räikkönen |
| 05 |  D. Ricciardo |
| 06 | N. Rosberg |
| 07 |  V. Bottas |
| 08 | M. Verstappen |
| 09 | S. Vettel |
| 10 | F. Massa |
| 11 |  E. Gutiérrez |
| 12 |  P. Wehrlein |
| 13 | R. Grosjean |
| 14 | F. Alonso |
| 15 |  C. Sainz |
| 16 | S. Pérez |
| 17 |  K. Magnussen |
| 18 | D. Kvyat |
| 19 |  M. Ericsson |
| 20 | J. Palmer |
| 21 | Rio Haryanto |
| 22 | F. Nasr |
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