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Button gets grid penalty he may never serve for Monaco collision

McLaren-Honda Formula 1 stand-in Jenson Button has formally incurred a grid penalty for the Monaco Grand Prix collision that left the Sauber of Pascal Wehrlein flipped on its side.

The 2009 world champion is extremely unlikely to end up serving his penalty, as he has made clear he expects his one-off Monaco appearance in place of Fernando Alonso to be his final race in F1.

Button was shadowing 17th-placed Wehrlein 57 laps into the 78-lap race when he attempted to pass the Sauber down the inside of Portier and made contact.

Wehrlein's car was pitched on its side and came to a rest against the barriers, while Button crawled to a halt further round the lap.

A stewards' statement read: "Having reviewed all the angles of video, the stewards concluded that Wehrlein was on the racing line, and that the move Button made was unlikely to result in a clean pass.

"The stewards did not consider the consequences of the collision, which resulted from Button trying to brake at the last moment and Wehrlein's interlocked wheel causing the car to turn on its side."

Assessing that Button was "predominantly to blame", the stewards opted to give him a three-place grid penalty "for his next race this season".

Button was also handed two penalty points on his licence.

PEREZ GETS TIME PENALTY FOR KVYAT CRASH, STAYS 13TH

Force India's Sergio Perez has incurred a time penalty and penalty points on his licence for his late-race collision with Toro Rosso's Daniil Kvyat.

The time penalty of 10 seconds makes no difference to Perez's finishing position in Monaco, as he was the last driver to take the chequered flag after pitting with damage.

Perez, running on fresh tyres late in the Monte Carlo race, attempted to pass Kvyat at Rascasse for ninth place with six laps to go but the move ended in a collision.

Kvyat, who retired on the spot while Perez pitted with damage, was furious with the Mexican driver after the race, calling the overtaking attempt "desperate" and "stupid".

After deliberations, the FIA stewards again decided that Perez was "predominantly to blame", opting for a 10s penalty and two penalty points on his licence.

Perez now carries a total of five penalty points, with the three points he had picked up in the 2016 Singapore GP for yellow flag infringements set to expire in September.

Zdroj: autosport.com