Kimi Antonelli has been issued a three-place grid penalty for the Hungarian Grand Prix following a rule infraction during Saturday’s Qualifying session. This penalty places him seventh on the starting grid for Sunday’s race, impacting his bid to extend his lead in the Drivers’ Championship standings. The decision comes after an investigation into his conduct under yellow flag conditions.
During the post-Qualifying review, it was determined that Antonelli did not slow down sufficiently for yellow flags that were displayed when Red Bull’s Max Verstappen spun in Q3. This action constituted a breach of Appendix H, Article 2.5.5 b) of the International Sporting Code and B1.8.4a of the FIA F1 Regulations. The stewards examined all available evidence before reaching their conclusion.
Antonelli had initially qualified fourth fastest. He had also provisionally moved up a spot on the grid due to a separate three-place penalty handed to Lewis Hamilton for impeding McLaren rival Oscar Piastri at the conclusion of Q3. However, Antonelli’s own penalty means he will now start further back.
Stewards’ Findings and Rationale
The stewards’ document detailed the findings, stating that the driver of Car 12, Antonelli, acknowledged lifting off the throttle earlier than his previous push lap upon seeing the yellow flag and light panel. Telemetry data verified this action. However, the reduction in speed was deemed to have occurred for a very brief period.
Crucially, the car’s speed when passing the scene of the incident involving Car 3, Verstappen, was noted to be slightly higher than it was on Antonelli’s previous push lap. The mini sector time recorded by Antonelli was only 0.03 seconds slower than his best time for that specific mini sector. While he lifted 16 metres earlier, resulting in him being 14 km/h slower when entering the yellow flag sector, he was 3 km/h faster when passing the incident site due to less brake application into the corner.
Representatives from the FIA observed that the speed reduction within the mini sector was less than 1%. The stewards considered this incident distinct from other cases that had resulted in no further action. They highlighted that, unlike those previous instances, there was no significant speed differential through the mini sector compared to Antonelli’s previous fastest time under similar circumstances.
The recommended penalty for this type of offence, according to the penalty guidelines, is typically a five-grid position drop. However, in mitigation, the stewards acknowledged that Antonelli did make some reduction in speed, even if it was ultimately deemed insufficient and unsustained. They also considered that the driver had limited time and distance to react to the situation, leading to the application of a lower penalty.
Impact on Starting Grid
The penalties issued to both Antonelli and Hamilton have altered the starting grid for the Hungarian Grand Prix. The revised grid sees Lando Norris of McLaren in pole position, followed by Charles Leclerc of Ferrari and Oscar Piastri of McLaren. Max Verstappen of Red Bull is set to start fourth, with Lewis Hamilton of Ferrari in fifth.
George Russell of Mercedes will start sixth, just ahead of Antonelli in seventh. Other drivers in the top ten include Isack Hadjar of Red Bull, Arvid Lindblad of Racing Bulls, and Nico Hulkenberg of Audi. In a separate incident during Qualifying, Antonelli also received a warning from the stewards for driving unnecessarily slowly on an in-lap.
The full revised starting grid for the Hungarian Grand Prix is as follows:
- 1 Lando Norris (McLaren)
- 2 Charles Leclerc (Ferrari)
- 3 Oscar Piastri (McLaren)
- 4 Max Verstappen (Red Bull)
- 5 Lewis Hamilton (Ferrari)
- 6 George Russell (Mercedes)
- 7 Kimi Antonelli (Mercedes)
- 8 Isack Hadjar (Red Bull)
- 9 Arvid Lindblad (Racing Bulls)
- 10 Nico Hulkenberg (Audi)
- 11 Liam Lawson (Racing Bulls)
- 12 Pierre Gasly (Alpine)
- 13 Franco Colapinto (Alpine)
- 14 Gabriel Bortoleto (Audi)
- 15 Esteban Ocon (Haas)
- 16 Fernando Alonso (Aston Martin)
- 17 Ollie Bearman (Haas)
- 18 Carlos Sainz (Williams)
- 19 Alex Albon (Williams)
- 20 Lance Stroll (Aston Martin)
- 21 Valtteri Bottas (Cadillac)
- 22 Sergio Perez (Cadillac)
Source: formula1.com
Arjun Sharma
Sports Reporter