• Malaysian Grand Prix - Qualifying

Raikkonen hit with three-place grid penalty

ESPN Staff
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Kimi Raikkonen will start Sunday's race from 10th © Getty Images
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Kimi Raikkonen has been slapped with a three-place grid drop ahead of Sunday's Malaysian Grand Prix after impeding Nico Rosberg towards the end of Q3.

The stewards deemed Raikkonen to have blocked Rosberg between corners 12 and 15 and have handed him a three-place grid drop as a result. He will now start from tenth on the grid with Jenson Button moving up to seventh, Adrian Sutil moving up to eighth and Sergio Perez starting ninth.

Raikkonen won the last grand prix in Australia but said his Lotus struggled for pace in the wet conditions.

"We weren't quick enough on the intermediates so I don't think we could have found much more time in the wet today," he said. "For sure I wanted more but it is what it is and I hope we'll do better on Sunday. It's obviously disappointing to lose three places on the grid, but we'll have to see what happens in the race. I have no idea what the weather will do, but it will be the same for everyone."

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