Bernoldi Sent to Back of the Grid

Brazilian Enrique Bernoldi will start Sunday's Malaysian Grand Prix from the back of the grid after stewards ruled that his Arrows car did not comply with the technical regulations.

Bernoldi, in his first season in Formula One, qualified 19th out of 22 drivers on Saturday.

But an official statement afterwards said that the International Automobile Federation (FIA) technical delegate had reported an irregularity with the measurements of the front wing and parts of the bodywork of his car.

The Arrows team manager and his driver were summoned to report to the stewards, who decided that all Bernoldi's qualifying times would be deleted.

"The stewards permit (Bernoldi) to start the race from the back of the grid," an FIA statement said.

Meanwhile, teammate Jos Verstappen complained of understeer difficulties as the Leafield-based team prepare for another struggle against the top teams in Sepang whilst they await new parts which will be ready for the following race in Brazil on April 1.

"I'm pretty frustrated by our qualifying performance," Verstappen said. "We didn't manage to get rid of the understeer so I wasn't able to push the car any harder and the power just wasn't there. It puts us in a difficult position for the race."