Lewis Hamilton 'certain' to be hit with F1 penalty in new Ferrari blow

Lewis Hamilton looking shocked at the 2026 Japanese Grand Prix — Photo: © IMAGO

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Lewis Hamilton 'certain' to be hit with F1 penalty in new Ferrari blow

Penalties galore at Ferrari?

Dan Ripley Global Editor

Professional F1 journalist and analyst

Wednesday 23 September 2026 08:58

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Lewis Hamilton looks set for more pain before the end of the F1 season, with the realisation he is likely to be hit with a grid penalty.

The Ferrari star's season has faded away after a win at the Spanish Grand Prix back in June looked like being the foundations of a title charge against Mercedes.

But since then Hamilton has only been on the podium once in the following seven races, which was the British Grand Prix back in July with a third place.

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The 41-year-old hasn't been able to better fourth place since and retired from his first race of the season last time out at the Spanish Grand Prix, leaving him 101 points behind championship leader Kimi Antonelli of Mercedes.

Ferrari haven't given up on a title push and are still targeting upgrades, including at the American Grand Prix in four races time.

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Penalty incoming for Hamilton

But according to The Race, Hamilton looks 'certain' to have to take a grid penalty before the end of the season due to going over the allotted allocation for engine parts.

While the report indicates that a decision on Ferrari has not yet been made. Hamilton's title hopes all but over makes the decision much more likely in terms of taking a fifth power unit, thus also giving him a second engine with the ADUO 2 upgrade introduced at Monza.

If Hamilton were to take a penalty, two tracks that come to mind for the seven-time world champion are Mexico City and Brazil's Interlagos circuit - both offer generous overtaking opportunities. The American Grand Prix at COTA could also be an option.

Leclerc also in Ferrari penalty woe

It's not just Hamilton suffering penalty woes, with his team-mate Charles Leclerc also set to take a penalty.

There were fears that the Monegasque driver had damaged his new ADUO 2 engine on its Italian Grand Prix debut after crashing. Ferrari have since given the engine an all-clear but are leaning towards a rotation of ADUO 2 engines for Leclerc.

This could take place as early as the Azerbaijan Grand Prix for Saturday's race, another track where long straights and a fresh option give the 28-year-old overtaking opportunities.

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