Nearing race ban Romain Grosjean is on knife edge

Formula One driver Romain Grosjean is on the brink of a race ban after his erratic driving at the Singapore Grand Prix resulted in him accruing a further two penalty points on his license.

The Frenchman, who drives for the Haas F1 Team, was adjudged to have ignored blue flags at the Marina Bay Street Circuit and not moving aside quickly enough to allow race leader Lewis Hamilton and second-placed Max Verstappen to pass him.

Grosjean, who was involved in a battle of his own with Williams driver Sergey Sirotkin, apologized to Hamilton after his error cost the Briton five crucial seconds and allowed Verstappen to catch him.

“I’m sorry if I blocked anyone, it was not my intention,” Grosjean told reporters. “I believe I did my best. I was fighting with Sergey, who was doing a little bit of go-kart racing out there.

Lewis Hamilton sprays second-placed Sebastian Vettel with champagne after winning the Abu Dhabi season-ending race, 11th of his title winning season.

Lewis Hamilton celebrates his 10th win of the season as he takes the Brazilian GP ahead of Max Verstappen and Kimi Raikkonen.

Lewis Hamilton savors the moment after clinching his fifth F1 world title with fourth place behind Max Verstappen in the Mexican Grand Prix.

Race winner Kimi Raikkonen is flanked by second-placed Max Verstappen (far left) and Lewis Hamilton, who finished third after a thrilling US Grand Prix. Hamilton increased his title lead to 70 points over Sebastian Vettel ahead of the final three rounds of the championship.

Race winner Lewis Hamilton had plenty to celebrate after claiming victory in the Japanese GP at Suzuka to lead the world championship by 67 points with four rounds remaining.

Lewis Hamilton (no 44) overtook fellow Mercedes driver Valtteri Bottas under team orders on his way to a decisive victory in the 2018 F1 title race as he extended his advantage over Sebastian Vettel to 50 points.

Lewis Hamilton led from pole position in his famous No.44 Mercedes and took his seventh victory of the season on the Marina Bay street circuit in Singapore.

Hamilton stormed to a record-equalling fifth Italian Grand Prix victory -- overtaking both Ferraris in the process.

Lewis Hamilton celebrates with the trophy on the podium after winning the Hungarian Grand Prix at the Hungaroring near Budapest to extend his title lead over Sebastian Vettel to 24 points.

Hamilton celebrates an extraordinary comeback win at the German Grand Prix to give him a 17-point championship lead as title rival Sebastian Vettel crashed out

Dutch driver Max Verstappen claims a dramatic victory at the home of Red Bull Racing. But how does that impact the Drivers' Championship?

Melbourne, Australia -- 'Lucky' Vettel wins season opener —

Sebastian Vettel took full advantage of a bizarre incident involving both cars of the American-owned Haas team to claim the opening race of the 2018 Formula One season in Australia.

Drivers' title race after round 1 —

Vettel -- 25 points
Hamilton -- 18 points
Raikonnen -- 15 points

Sakhir, Bahrain -- Ferrari win soured by injured mechanic —

Vettel won for the second time in as many races at the Bahrain Grand Prix. But the Italian team's victory was overshadowed after one of its mechanics suffered a broken leg when he was hit by Kimi Raikkonen's car during a pit stop.

Drivers' title race after round 2 —

Vettel -- 50 points
Hamilton -- 33 points
Bottas -- 22 points

Shanghai, China —

An inspired Daniel Ricciardo claimed a remarkable and unexpected victory from sixth on the grid after a tactical masterstroke by his Red Bull team in Shanghai, with furious championship leader Vettel back in eighth place.

Drivers' title race after round 3 —

Vettel -- 54 points
Hamilton -- 45 points
Bottas -- 40 points

Baku, Azerbaijan -- Red Bull drivers shockingly crash as Hamilton triumphs —

Lewis Hamilton was the chief beneficiary of a late puncture suffered by his Mercedes teammate Valtteri Bottas as he clinched his first win of the season at April's action-packed Azerbaijan Grand Prix.

Drivers' title race after round 4 —

Hamilton -- 70 points
Vettel -- 66 points
Raikkonen -- 48 points

Barcelona, Spain -- Lewis Hamilton leads Mercedes one-two —

After his unlikely victory in Azerbaijan, it was a second straight win for Hamilton as he bids for a fifth world championship -- and it could not have been more comfortable.

Drivers' title race after round 5 —

Hamilton -- 95 points
Vettel -- 78 points
Bottas -- 57 points

Monaco -- Redemption for Ricciardo —

Ricciardo nursed his ailing Red Bull to a remarkable victory on the streets of Monte Carlo and with it made up for his 2016 heartbreak on the same circuit.

Drivers' title race after round 6 —

Hamilton -- 110 points
Vettel -- 96 points
Ricciardo -- 72 points

Canada -- Vettel wins to take title initiative —

Sebastian Vettel's 50th career victory saw him replace Lewis Hamilton at the top of the championship standings to cap an emotional day for the Ferrari team.

Drivers' title race after round 7 —

Vettel -- 121 points
Hamilton -- 120 points
Bottas -- 86 points

France -- Hamilton back in the groove —

Briton Lewis Hamilton won the first French Grand Prix since 2008.
The Mercedes driver avoided the worst of a dramatic start that saw title rival Sebastian Vettel clip Valtteri Bottas. Both drivers sustained damage in the collision, forcing them to pit early them and fall to the back of the grid.

Drivers' title race after round 8 —

Hamilton -- 145 points
Vettel -- 131 points
Ricciardo -- 96 points

Austria -- Verstappen wins after Mercedes meltdown —

Red Bull's Max Verstappen won a dramatic Austrian Grand Prix as hitherto championship leader Lewis Hamilton and Mercedes teammate, Valtteri Bottas, were forced to retire.

Drivers' title race after round 9 —

Vettel - 146 points
Hamilton - 145 points
Raikkonen - 101 points

Britain -- Vettel wins despite Hamilton fightback —

Home favorite Lewis Hamilton was denied a sixth victory at the British Grand Prix as Ferrari's Sebastian Vettel took control of the championship at Silverstone

Drivers' title race after round 10 —

Vettel - 171Hamilton - 163Raikkonen - 116

Germany -- Advantage Hamilton as Vettel crashes out —

Hamilton fought back from 14th on the grid to claim an astonishing victory as Vettel crashed out at Hockenheim.

Drivers' title race after round 11 —

Hamilton - 188
Vettel - 171
Raikkonen - 131

Hungary -- Hamilton extends title lead with 'beautiful' win —

Hamilton went into F1's summer break with a season-high 24-point advantage in the title race over Vettel after winning at the Hungaroring.

Drivers' title race after round 11 —

Hamilton -- 213 points
Vettel -- 189 points
Raikkonen -- 146 points

Belgium -- Vettel wins after spectacular crash —

Fernando Alonso's car was launched over the top of Charles Leclerc on the opening corner of the Belgian Grand Prix. Sebastian Vettel went on to win at Spa to cut Lewis Hamilton's lead at the top of the Driver Standings to 17 points.

Drivers' title race after round 12 —

Hamilton -- 231Vettel -- 214Raikkonen - 146

Ferrari's sea of fans -- the 'Tifosi' -- hold up a flag making fun of Lewis Hamilton, but he has the last laugh, winning the Italian Grand Prix for the fifth time

The story of the 2018 F1 season so far

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“I couldn’t really slow down. Pierre [Gasly] was on my gearbox and Sergey was on my front wing. I passed him, then as soon as I passed him, I let Lewis by.”

Four-time world champion Hamilton said the incident left him with his “heart was in my mouth for a minute.”

‘Completely forgot’ the rules

Maria Teresa de Filippis 1958 —

Since Formula One's inception, a small group of pioneering women have broken new ground. In 1958, Italian driver Maria Teresa de Filippis became the first women to compete in a Formula One race at the Belgian Grand Prix. She finished 10th and would go on to race in two more grands prix, in Italy and Portugal.

Lella Lombardi 1975 —

In 1975, Lella Lombardi became the first and only female driver to earn points in a grand prix. She finished sixth and scored a point at the Spanish Grand Prix, but the race was halted after 29 laps due to a major crash and drivers were awarded half points.

Susie Wolff 2012-2015 —

Susie Wolff joined Williams as a development driver in 2012 and two years later, at the British Grand Prix, became the first women since Giovanna Amati in 1992 to be involved in a Formula One race weekend.

Monisha Kaltenborn 2012-2017 —

Monisha Kaltenborn was Formula One's first ever female team boss, holding the position of Team Principal at Sauber between 2012 and 2017. Kaltenborn had been with the team in various roles since 1999 and was a stakeholder until it was taken over by Longbow Finance in 2016.

Claire Williams 2013-Present —

Since 2013, Claire Williams, daughter of Williams Formula One founder Frank, has been in the role of deputy team principal. Due to her father's health complications, Williams has assumed the responsibilities of team principal since October 2017.

Michele Mouton 2009-Present —

Michele Mouton made her name as a rally car driver in the 70s and 80s, winning three races, earning nine podiums and finished as runner up in the 1982 World Championship. Since 2009, she has held the position of President of the FiA Women in Motorsport Commission.

A history of women in Formula One

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Any driver that accumulates 12 points on their “Super License” in a 12-month period will automatically receive a ban – Grosjean currently has nine.

The 32-year-old received his first point on October 29, 2017 at the United States Grand Prix, meaning he’ll need to be on his best behavior at the upcoming Russian, Japanese, United States and Mexican Grands Prix.

Any potential ban would be the second of Grosjean’s career, the first coming after he was ruled to have caused the spectacular opening-corner crash at the 2012 Belgian Grand Prix.

Grosjean had been involved in seven first-lap crashes in the 12 races so far that season and was also fined €50,000.

After the Singapore Grand Prix, Formula 1 Race Director Charlie Whiting said Grosjean “just completely forgot the golden rule of blue flags.”

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Published 4:30 AM EDT, Wed September 19, 2018

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“If you’re in a battle, you’ve got to forget about your own battle and move over,” he said. “I’ve drilled that into them many, many times and I think he just completely forgot about it.

“He was so intent on his battle with Sirotkin, the light panels were flashing with his race number on them and Lewis was much, much faster.

“It was probably one of the worst cases of ignoring blue flags that I’ve seen for a long time.”