Qualifying Incidents Lead to Penalties
Kimi Antonelli, the current F1 championship leader, has been issued a three-place grid penalty for the upcoming Hungarian Grand Prix. This decision follows a rule violation during Saturday’s qualifying session at the Hungaroring. The penalty means Antonelli will start Sunday’s race from the seventh position on the grid.
The penalty stems from an investigation into Antonelli’s conduct during Q3, where he was found to have failed to slow sufficiently under yellow flags. These flags were deployed after Red Bull’s Max Verstappen spun. Stewards determined that Antonelli’s actions breached Appendix H, Article 2.5.5 b) of the International Sporting Code and B1.8.4a of the FIA F1 Regulations.
Initially, Antonelli had qualified in fourth place. His provisional grid position was further enhanced to third due to a separate three-place penalty handed to Lewis Hamilton. Hamilton’s penalty was for impeding McLaren driver Oscar Piastri during the final moments of Q3.
The stewards’ document detailed their findings, noting that telemetry showed Antonelli did lift off the throttle earlier than his previous push lap upon seeing the yellow flag and light panel. However, this reduction in speed was brief. The car’s speed when passing the incident scene involving Verstappen was slightly higher than during his prior push lap.
Further analysis revealed that Antonelli’s mini-sector time was only 0.03 seconds slower than his best time for that specific mini-sector. While he was 14 km/h slower entering the yellow flag sector due to lifting 16 metres earlier, he was 3 km/h faster when passing the incident site. This was attributed to less brake application entering the corner. FIA representatives highlighted that the speed reduction in the mini-sector was less than 1%.
Stewards’ Decision and Grid Impact
The stewards distinguished this incident from others that typically result in no further action. They emphasized that, unlike those cases, there was no significant speed differential through the mini-sector compared to Antonelli’s previous fastest time under similar conditions. The recommended penalty for this type of offence, according to penalty guidelines, is a five-grid-position drop.
However, the stewards considered mitigating factors. They acknowledged that Antonelli did make an attempt to reduce speed, even if it was deemed insufficient and unsustained. Additionally, they noted that the driver had limited time and distance to react to the situation. These considerations led to the application of a lower penalty.
As a result of the penalties, the starting grid for the Hungarian Grand Prix has been adjusted. Lando Norris of McLaren will start from pole position, followed by Charles Leclerc of Ferrari in second, and Oscar Piastri of McLaren in third. Max Verstappen will start fourth, with Lewis Hamilton in fifth for Ferrari, and George Russell of Mercedes in sixth.
Antonelli’s penalty places him in seventh, ahead of Isack Hadjar of Red Bull in eighth, Arvid Lindblad of Racing Bulls in ninth, and Nico Hulkenberg of Audi completing the top ten. Other drivers on the grid include Liam Lawson (Racing Bulls), Pierre Gasly (Alpine), Franco Colapinto (Alpine), Gabriel Bortoleto (Audi), Esteban Ocon (Haas), Fernando Alonso (Aston Martin), Ollie Bearman (Haas), Carlos Sainz (Williams), Alex Albon (Williams), Lance Stroll (Aston Martin), Valtteri Bottas (Cadillac), and Sergio Perez (Cadillac).
This grid adjustment adds to Antonelli’s challenge as he aims to extend his lead in the Drivers’ Championship standings. In a separate incident during qualifying, Antonelli also received a warning from the stewards for driving unnecessarily slowly on an in-lap.
Source: formula1.com
