Grosjean faces time penalty after engine change

Romain Grosjean faces being hit with a time penalty in this weekend's 2014 Formula 1 Etihad Airways Abu Dhabi Grand Prix as a result of changing elements of his power unit.

Lotus opted to use a sixth internal combustion unit, turbocharger and MGU-H for the 2014 finale, incurring a 20-place grid drop penalty in total. However, because he will not be able to use that full penalty even if he qualifies on pole - and given he will not be able to roll the outstanding balance into a future race this season - he faces being hit with a time penalty.

The sporting regulations state that an outstanding grid drop of one to five places will equate to a five-second penalty, and that a drop of six to 10 places equates to a 10-second penalty.

Should Grosjean have a remaining grid penalty of 11-20 places, he will have to take a drive-through penalty during the Grand Prix.

It is therefore likely that Grosjean will not only start from the back of the field at Yas Marina, but will also have to take a time penalty during Sunday's race.