Two penalty points for Ericsson

Marcus Ericsson had two penalty points added to his licence for his jump start at the Austrian Grand Prix on Sunday. 

The Sauber driver now has five points against his name following an incident during the third free practice at Monza last year. Ericsson, who was driving a Caterham at the time, failed to slow down despite double yellow flags. Drivers scoring 12 penalty points over a 12-month period receive an automatic one-race suspension.  

His eagerness at the start at the Red Bull Ring on Sunday cost him any chance he had of finishing in the top 10 as he was forced to take a mandatory drive-through penalty for his indiscretion. 

Ericsson, who started 11th on the grid, had to pit for a new front wing as early as lap 2 after riding over debris on the track. He was able to join up behind the safety car following the incident between Kimi Raikkonen and Fernando Alonso.

The Swede then took his drive-through penalty on lap 12 and returned to the track at the rear of the field. He acknowledged that he was just a little too enthusiastic at the start.

"It began at the start with me being to eager and jumping the start. On lap one I went over debris, which destroyed both my front and rear wing. I had an early first pit stop to get a new front wing," he said.

His race however, continued to prove eventful.

During his first routine pit stop on lap 21, his Sauber seemed to be coasting in the pitlane. This turned out to be a problem with the electronics which then caused the C34 to shut down with the Swede having to restart it.

"I had an electronic issue, so the car switched off twice, which forced me to restart it again."

After an eventful grand prix, Ericsson eventually finished in 13th position.