Kamui Kobayashi’s claims that he was told to retire from Sunday’s Russian Grand Prix by Caterham to save mileage on parts have been denied by the Leafield-based team.

The Japanese driver had said after retiring 21 laps into the race: “Nothing wrong with the car. The team asked me to stop the car to save mileage.

“We have a lot of mileage limitation to avoid things going wrong with the parts. This is why I get message from top management.”

But team principal Manfredi Ravetto said they ordered Kobayashi to stop on safety grounds because of a brake problem.

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