F1 Penalty Points 2026: Which stars risk race ban after Japanese Grand Prix?

The F1 2026 season sees entirely new chassis and power unit regulations as well as a change in approach to the FIA’s penalty points system.

Last season, a multitude of penalties were handed out to F1 stars for driving infringements, but for 2026 and beyond, the FIA have tightened the Driving Standards Guidelines.

This means that drivers are now less likely to receive penalty points for infringements, with the stewards now set to only impose penalty points in incidents that are considered: “dangerous, reckless or apparently deliberate actions resulting in a collision or for other unacceptable or unsportsmanlike behaviour.”

The 2026 calendar is taking an enforced break throughout April following F1’s decision to cancel the Bahrain and Saudi Arabian Grands Prix as a result of the ongoing conflict in the Middle East.

So, after the third round of the championship in Japan, are any F1 drivers at risk of a race ban?

Well, one driver who certainly needs to keep his current tally in mind when the campaign resumes in Miami in May is Ollie Bearman.

The Haas F1 star edged even closer to a race ban at last year's season finale when the FIA slapped him with a five-second time penalty and an extra penalty point for changing direction more than once whilst defending against the Aston Martin of Lance Stroll.

Bearman has now racked up a total of 10 penalty points, meaning he is only two points away from a race ban heading into the Miami GP, so he must play nicely out on track, especially considering the first of his current penalty points tally doesn’t expire until May 23 ahead of the Canadian GP.

Here are the F1 driver penalty point standings following the 2026 Japanese GP.

F1 HEADLINES: Verstappen at breaking point as journalists demand FIA action

F1 driver penalty points after Japanese GP

F1 driver penalty points and when they expire

Red Bull

Max Verstappen - Three points

Isack Hadjar - Zero points

Ferrari

Lewis Hamilton - Three points

Charles Leclerc - One point

Mercedes

George Russell - Zero points

Kimi Antonelli - Five points

Alpine

Pierre Gasly - Two points

Franco Colapinto - One point

McLaren

Lando Norris - Zero points

Oscar Piastri - Four points

Aston Martin

Fernando Alonso - Zero points

Lance Stroll - Six points

Haas

Esteban Ocon - Zero points

Ollie Bearman - 10 points

Racing Bulls

Liam Lawson - Six points

Arvid Lindblad - Zero points

Williams

Carlos Sainz - Four points

Alex Albon - Three points

Cadillac

Valtteri Bottas - Zero points

Sergio Perez - Zero points

Audi

Nico Hulkenberg - Zero points

Gabriel Bortoleto - Two points

F1 RESULTS: Japanese GP times & positions

Written by

Kerry Violet - F1 News Editor

Having graduated from the University of Sheffield with a 2:1 in Journalism in 2022, Kerry continued her pursuit of finding a full-time position in motorsport through work with the F1 Arcade in London, where she got to meet true fans of the sport and make a live grand prix watch party memorable for them. It was here that she confirmed her dream of combining her background in journalism and love of motorsport, going on to volunteer with the female-led platform Empoword Journalism. Having completed stints as a screen editor and sports editor, Kerry landed her first F1-specific editorial role with GPFans and has thoroughly enjoyed continuing to work closely with the sport ever since. The access GPFans offers Kerry has allowed her to interview big names such as Naomi Schiff and David Coulthard and given her experiences she could only have dreamt of as a young F1 fan.

View full biography

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