Norris testimony saves Kimi Antonelli from Chinese GP Sprint penalty
Kimi Antonelli has avoided a grid penalty after an investigation following Sprint qualifying.
The FIA has confirmed that no further action is being taken against Kimi Antonelli, after he allegedly impeded Lando Norris during SQ2.
Norris had complained of the Mercedes driver being on the apex at Turn 1 when approaching quickly, forcing him to abort what he said over team radio was going to be a push lap during Sprint qualifying on Friday.
Kimi Antonelli avoids grid penalty after Chinese GP investigation
Want more PlanetF1.com coverage? Add us as a preferred source on Google to your favourites list for news you can trust.
A three-place grid drop was possible if Antonelli was found to have impeded Norris, with the Mercedes driver having been leaving the pit lane at the time, but the stewards have decided against issuing a punishment to the Italian teenager.
As Norris has since confirmed that he was on a ‘pushing warm-up lap’ rather than a fully-fledged lap, Antonelli has avoided a penalty – by the stewards’ own admission.
They wrote in their verdict: “The driver of Car 1 (Lando Norris) told us that he was on a “pushing warm up lap” and not on a push lap. In other words, he was not actively seeking to set a meaningful lap time when Car 12 (Kimi Antonelli) came out of the pit lane and onto the track.
More from Sprint qualifying at the Chinese Grand Prix
George Russell storms to Chinese Grand Prix Sprint pole ahead of Kimi Antonelli
Max Verstappen brands ‘whole day a disaster’ after China sprint quali
“Had Car 1 been on a push lap then, given the position of Car 12 on the track, Car 12 would have unnecessarily impeded Car 1.
“In the light of the clear position taken by the driver of Car 1 that he was not impeded by Car 12 as he was not seeking to set a meaningful lap time, we took no further action.”
Antonelli will be able to keep his grid slot of second after qualifying behind Mercedes teammate, George Russell, on Friday.
At time of writing, Pierre Gasly was also under investigation for allegedly impeding Max Verstappen on the exit of Turn 14, but no verdict had been reached.
Want to be the first to know exclusive information from the F1 paddock? Join our broadcast channel on WhatsApp to get the scoop on the latest developments from our team of accredited journalists.
You can also subscribe to the PlanetF1 YouTube channel for exclusive features, hear from our paddock journalists with stories from the heart of Formula 1 and much more!
Read next: George Russell: Mercedes’ 2026 engine isn’t crushing rivals like 2014
