FIA announce LATE Kimi Antonelli penalty as Qatar result changes

Kimi Antonelli lost out on fifth place at the Qatar Grand Prix after the FIA announced a penalty for the F1 rookie during Saturday’s sprint race.

The Italian driver failed to keep his Mercedes within the confines of the circuit during the Qatar GP sprint race, where he exceeded track limits on three occasions and was then given a black and white flag as a warning.

Antonelli then exceeded track limits on a fourth occasion after the flag, and was handed a five-second time penalty for the offence.

Originally, the Mercedes star was on for a fifth place finish on Saturday in Lusail, after Yuki Tsunoda was also awarded a five-second time penalty for exactly the same offence as Antonelli.

However, because Tsunoda was ahead on the road and in fifth, the Japanese driver maintained his position at the close of the race despite being dropped five seconds, but Antonelli was also dropped five seconds behind and finished sixth.

Tsunoda penalised at Qatar GP

The five-second penalty may not have impacted his finishing position, but it marred Tsunoda’s Saturday in Qatar slightly after what was arguably his best performance at Red Bull to date.

Tsunoda beat four-time world champion team-mate Max Verstappen in sprint qualifying on Friday, although the Dutchman managed to get past his younger counterpart on the opening lap of the race.

However, Tsunoda's performance in Qatar may have come too late, with it being an open secret that the 25-year-old is likely to be replaced by Racing Bulls' Isack Hadjar for 2026.

Whether Tsunoda remains in F1 is another topic up for debate, with Liam Lawson believed to be remaining at Racing Bulls and F2’s Arvid Lindblad in contention for the junior seat.

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