Kimi Antonelli regains fourth place in F1 Australian GP: FIA approves Mercedes’ review. Kimi Antonelli regained his fourth place in the Australian GP.

With three laps to go, a message appeared on the timing screens indicating that Kimi Antonelli was under investigation for an “unsafe release.” The inquiry resulted in a five-second penalty added to his race time.

The sanction cost him a position in favor of Alexander Albon and left Kimi Antonelli slightly disappointed. Mercedes quickly pointed out that right after his final pit stop, Kimi Antonelli drove through the pit lane (in the slow lane) alongside Hulkenberg’s Sauber—an edge case but not one that justified a penalty.

The team submitted a formal request for a review, providing video evidence that had not been available to the stewards at the time of the original decision. “This video has been deemed relevant and significant,” the stewards’ statement read, “and was not available when the initial decision was made (as it was only downloaded from the Formula 1 camera after the race). After reviewing the new footage, along with additional helicopter footage, the stewards have decided to overturn the previous decision.”

“It is clear that car 12 (Kimi Antonelli) only entered the fast lane after checking his mirror to confirm he was not interfering with car 27 (Nico Hulkenberg). The footage also shows that he had enough space to safely pass the McLaren pit box without putting McLaren mechanics at risk.”

With the penalty revoked, Kimi Antonelli regained the fourth place he had secured at the checkered flag. The additional two points earned by Kimi also allowed Mercedes to leave Melbourne with a total of 27 points, the same as McLaren.