In a surprising turn of events, Kimi Antonelli’s penalty has been overturned by the FIA after a petition for review was submitted by the Mercedes-AMG PETRONAS F1 Team. The petition, which met all the required criteria and was filed within the 96-hour deadline, prompted a thorough review of the original decision by the Stewards. A key factor in the decision was the presentation of new video footage from the roll hoop camera that was previously unavailable.
The video, which was downloaded from the Formula One cameras post-race, provided crucial evidence that wasn’t accessible at the time of the original penalty decision. Along with additional footage from the helicopter, the new evidence revealed that Antonelli’s car did not move into the fast lane until well down the pit lane, and only after confirming there was enough clearance with another car. The footage also showed that Antonelli had ample space to safely pass the McLaren pits without posing any risk to the McLaren mechanics.
As a result, the Stewards reversed their initial ruling and decided to remove the penalty that had been imposed on Car 12, effectively clearing Antonelli and Mercedes of any wrongdoing.
The decision returns Antonelli to P4 while moving Alex Albon back to P5.
