Kimi Antonelli will slide back three positions on the starting grid for the Hungarian Formula 1 Grand Prix following a penalty for failing to respect caution flags.
The Italian driver secured the fourth spot during qualifying at the Hungaroring, with Mercedes ending up behind pole-winner Lando Norris of McLaren as well as both Ferrari cars. However, during his last hot lap, Antonelli encountered yellow flags at the final turn, where Max Verstappen’s Red Bull had come to a halt in the runoff zone following a spin.
Despite the warning flags, Antonelli managed to lower his time in the last sector to seal fourth place, prompting an investigation by the stewards to determine if he had slowed down sufficiently to comply with the yellow flag regulations.
Because the stewards concluded that he had only marginally reduced his speed and was actually quicker through that corner than during his prior flying lap, the current championship leader was given a three-place grid penalty, pushing him down to seventh.
Additionally, Ferrari driver Lewis Hamilton was hit with a three-spot grid penalty for blocking Oscar Piastri at the first corner. Consequently, Piastri climbs to third place, while Verstappen slots alongside him on the second row.
“The competitor in Car 12 explained that once he spotted the yellow flag and the light board, he backed off the accelerator sooner than on his earlier fast lap,” noted the stewards in their official decision. “Data logs confirmed this action. Nevertheless, the deceleration was extremely brief, and the vehicle’s speed while driving past Car 3’s incident was actually marginally quicker than on the preceding timed lap.
Watch: Lando Norris Secures Surprise Pole | F1 Hungarian GP Qualifying
“His time in that mini-sector was a mere 0.03 seconds off his personal best for the segment. Although releasing the throttle 16 meters sooner meant he entered the yellow zone 14 km/h slower, he went on to pass the incident area 3 km/h faster because he braked less heading into the turn. Officials from the FIA pointed out that the overall drop in speed across the mini-sector was under 1%.
“The panel distinguished this case from previous occurrences that escaped penalty, noting that, unlike those situations, there was no meaningful difference in speed throughout the mini-sector when compared to the driver’s prior quickest time in comparable conditions.”
While the infraction typically carries a five-place grid demotion, the stewards opted for a lighter sanction since the Italian driver did make some effort to reduce speed. Additionally, a penalty point has been added to the 19-year-old’s license.
“While the standard sanction outlined in the guidelines for such a violation is a five-spot grid penalty,” the FIA stewards elaborated, “we decided to mitigate the punishment because the competitor did slow down, even though we found the deceleration to be inadequate and too brief. Moreover, his reaction window and braking distance were quite restricted, which justifies a reduced penalty.”
Furthermore, Antonelli was issued a formal warning for maintaining an excessively slow pace and failing to stay within the mandatory minimum delta times on his slow lap back to the pits after his final qualifying run.
Your feedback matters!
Share your thoughts on what you would like to see from us in the future.
Participate in our survey
– The Team at Autosport.com
