Kimi Antonelli hit with grid penalty for Hungarian GP
Kimi Antonelli has been handed a three-place grid penalty for Sunday's Hungarian Grand Prix after stewards ruled he failed to slow sufficiently for yellow flags in Qualifying. The Mercedes championship leader, who had qualified fourth at the Hungaroring, will now start seventh following the breach linked to Max Verstappen's Q3 spin.
The decision adds pressure on the Italian as he looks to protect his Drivers' Championship lead. For more celebrity and motorsport breaking updates, follow BlasterPost Celebrity Breaking News.
Key Takeaways
- Kimi Antonelli received a three-place grid drop for an insufficient yellow-flag slowdown in Hungarian GP Qualifying.
- He qualified fourth but will start seventh after Max Verstappen's Q3 spin triggered yellow flags.
- Stewards mitigated the guideline five-place penalty to three because Antonelli did lift and had limited reaction time.
- He also received a separate warning for driving unnecessarily slowly on his Q3 in-lap.
- Lewis Hamilton was likewise hit with a three-place grid penalty for impeding Oscar Piastri.
Why did Kimi Antonelli get a Hungarian GP grid penalty?
According to Formula 1's official report, Antonelli breached Appendix H, Article 2.5.5 b) of the International Sporting Code and B1.8.4a of the FIA Formula 1 Regulations.
Yellow flags were shown when Red Bull's Max Verstappen spun in Q3. F1 rules require any driver passing a waved yellow flag sector to reduce speed and be prepared to change direction.
Antonelli said he lifted earlier than on his previous push lap, and telemetry confirmed that. Stewards still found the slowdown too brief and unsustained.
How much slower was Antonelli under the yellow flags?
Stewards said Antonelli's mini-sector time was only 0.03 seconds slower than his best in that mini sector. He lifted 16 metres earlier and entered the yellow-flag sector 14 km/h slower.
Yet he was 3 km/h faster when passing Verstappen's incident site because he applied less braking into the corner. FIA representatives noted the speed reduction in the mini sector was less than 1%.
Stewards treated the case as different from no-further-action yellow-flag reviews, citing the lack of a significant speed delta versus his previous fastest time in similar conditions.
Where will Kimi Antonelli start the Hungarian Grand Prix?
Antonelli ended Qualifying fourth and had provisionally gained a grid spot after Lewis Hamilton's own three-place drop for impeding McLaren's Oscar Piastri late in Q3.
With the yellow-flag sanction applied, the Mercedes driver falls to seventh for Sunday's race at the Hungaroring. ESPN reported he entered the weekend with a 45-point championship lead over Ferrari's Hamilton.
Hamilton had set the second-fastest Qualifying time but will start fifth after his impeding penalty. McLaren's Lando Norris took pole, while Autosport reported Piastri moves up to third with Verstappen joining him on the second row.
Was the penalty as severe as the guidelines allow?
Penalty guidelines recommend a five-place drop for this offence. Stewards applied three places in mitigation, saying Antonelli did reduce speed, even if insufficiently, and had limited time and distance to react.
Autosport also reported Antonelli received a penalty point on his licence. In a separate matter, he was warned for exceeding the event's maximum in-lap delta between Safety Car lines after Q3.
Stewards noted no other car was overtaken or affected on that slow in-lap. Mercedes said engineers were dealing with an issue on George Russell's car and should have reminded Antonelli to speed up.