Latifi hit with 5-place grid penalty for Japanese GP after clash with Zhou in Singapore

Nicholas Latifi will be forced to serve a five-place grid penalty at the upcoming Japanese Grand Prix after the stewards deemed him at fault for a collision with Zhou Guanyu in Singapore.

Latifi and Zhou were running towards the back of the pack in the early stages of Sunday night’s race when a clash put Zhou out on the spot and saw Latifi limp back to the pits with terminal damage.

Replays showed that, as Zhou attempted to pull alongside Latifi and make a move at Turn 5 on Lap 7 of 61, the Williams driver pulled across to the left-hand side of the track, giving Zhou nowhere to go and resulting in contact.

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After reviewing the footage, the stewards determined that Latifi was “predominantly to blame” for the incident, handing him a five-place grid drop for Suzuka and two penalty points (putting him on three for the 12-month period).

“Zhou was attempting to overtake Latifi on a straight approaching Turn 5 and had sufficient room, taking the normal racing line. Latifi pulled to the left, not leaving one car width to Zhou and resulting in significant contact between the cars,” read the stewards’ explanation.