Raikkonen Hits Engine Trouble Again

McLaren's Kimi Raikkonen, yet to finish a race this season, will start Sunday's San Marino Formula One Grand Prix from the back of the grid after yet another engine problem.

A McLaren spokeswoman said the team had decided to change Raikkonen's engine after his first qualifying run on Saturday, when he finished ninth quickest.

The Finn, championship runner-up last year after taking Ferrari's Michael Schumacher down to the wire, went out for an installation lap to scrub his tyres but did not complete a second timed qualifying lap.

Raikkonen started the last Bahrain Grand Prix from the back of the grid after an engine problem.

Under new rules this season, drivers are limited to one engine per weekend and any change brings with it a 10-place penalty on the grid.

Raikkonen was the first to retire during the race in Bahrain, the third round of the championship, when the Mercedes-Ilmor unit erupted in a sheet of flame. Before that he suffered a transmission failure in Malaysia and an engine failure in Australia.

Minardi's Hungarian driver Zsolt Baumgartner, who would have qualified in last place after spinning off on his second timed lap, also changed his car's engine.