FIA announce Lewis Hamilton DEMOTION for Italian Grand Prix

Lewis Hamilton will receive a grid drop at the upcoming Italian Grand Prix after the FIA announced a penalty for the F1 champion.

For his first race at Monza as a Ferrari driver, Hamilton will serve a five-place grid drop for failing to slow under double yellow flags prior to the start of the Dutch GP.

The race director informed all drivers that the last corner before the pit lane would have double yellow flags waved, for safety in the pit lane.

Therefore, the regulations require that any driver passing through the double waved sector ‘reduce speed significantly’.

Crucially, the regulations also require all drivers covering more than one reconnaissance lap to drive down the pit entry road at ‘greatly reduced speed’.

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FIA confirm grid drop for Hamilton

Data showed that Hamilton had entered the double yellow sector approximately 20kph less than his speed at the same point in practice sessions, and he had reduced throttle application in the order of 10% to 20%, while he had lifted and braked 70 metres earlier when entering the pit lane.

The stewards did not consider a 20kph reduction in speed as a 'significant' reduction, and also did not consider the speed at which Hamilton entered the pit entry road as being at a ‘greatly’ reduced speed.

Hamilton was lucky to escape with a five-place grid drop however, with the stewards stating the infringement would usually attract a 10-place grid penalty.

The 40-year-old escaped a harsher penalty because he made an attempt to reduce his speed and to brake earlier, which the stewards took into account as mitigating circumstances.

Hamilton's penalty compounds a miserable weekend for the champion at Zandvoort, where he crashed out and retired from the race prematurely.

As Hamilton approached the exit of Turn 3 in slippery conditions, he experienced a snap of oversteer and crashed into the barriers.

Charles Leclerc also failed to finish the Dutch GP, after Kimi Antonelli crashed into him while attempting an overtake.

With one driver on the receiving end of a penalty, Ferrari's Monza hopes have been further dashed in what can only be described as a miserable 2025 season.

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