After the conclusion of the 2025 United States Grand Prix in Austin, the race stewards announced a penalty for one driver that will be applied at the next round in Mexico. Shortly after the checkered flag, officials confirmed that the investigation concerned an incident involving Carlos Sainz.
Penalty for the former Ferrari driver
The Williams driver was found responsible for a collision with Kimi Antonelli during an overly optimistic overtaking attempt that ultimately forced the Italian rookie to retire from the race. As a result, the stewards decided to penalize Sainz for the next Grand Prix weekend. Since the Spanish driver did not finish the race in Austin, regulations stipulate that the penalty must be served at the following event.
After reviewing the footage and hearing from the former Ferrari driver, the stewards issued a five-place grid penalty for Carlos Sainz at the start of the Mexican Grand Prix. In addition, he received two penalty points on his FIA Super License, bringing his total to four.
The official explanation from the stewards
The race stewards provided detailed reasoning in their official statement: “At no point was car number 55 ahead of car number 12. For this reason, the stewards have decided to impose a penalty on car 55. Furthermore, since car 55 did not finish the race, the penalty will be applied at the next event in which the driver participates.”
Williams retains the right to appeal the decision, though it appears unlikely that the FIA will overturn the ruling. The incident was clear-cut, and the responsibility of the Spanish driver towards Kimi Antonelli’s retirement was evident.
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