Lewis Hamilton, Kimi Antonelli handed out Hungarian GP grid penalties that messed up the race grid led by Lando Norris | F1 News

Lewis Hamilton and world championship leader Kimi Antonelli have been penalized for shuffling the order at the top end of the Hungarian Grand Prix grid.

Ferrari’s Hamilton was demoted from second place to three-place finish within hours of qualifying to intercept McLaren’s Oscar Piastre at the end of Q3.

This initially dropped the Ferrari driver behind Antonelli, who originally qualified fourth, before the Mercedes driver was then demoted three-places himself for failing to slow down sufficiently for the yellow flag when Max Verstappen spun in the final corner.

Hamilton will now start fifth and Antonelli – who leads the Briton in the drivers’ championship by 45 points – seventh, behind Mercedes team-mate George Russell.

The Ferrari driver has now received three stewards’ penalties in the last three race weekends. He was previously handed a five-second in-race ban for a false start at Silverstone and then a first-lap collision with Russell last week in Belgium.

In a post on Instagram on Saturday evening, Hamilton wrote: “Sometimes you just can’t catch a break. Another weekend when I’m feeling great all session, but then it falls apart.

“It’s very disappointing to start P5 from so close to the pole.

“I always try my best to stay positive – sport is always about highs and lows, but it’s also about the margins. Every point counts and you have to make the most of every opportunity.

“After three penalties in three weekends, it’s going to be hard to keep that positivity. Still, I won’t let the setbacks take away from the progress we’re making as a team. With the pace we have, I’m optimistic we can get something out of the race tomorrow. The car is feeling better and better, and we’ve been competitive all weekend.

“Tonight, we will continue to work hard together to give ourselves the best possible chance tomorrow. I always enjoy this track, so have faith and send good vibes for the race.”

McLaren’s Lando Norris claimed pole position after topping qualifying with Hamilton’s penalty edging team-mate Charles Leclerc to the front row in second place.

Piastri finished third with Red Bull’s Verstappen fourth and sixth.

Ken Hamilton was given his three-place grid penalty

Hamilton was among the first drivers to complete his final lap – he was surprised by the positioning – in Q3 and did not improve on what stood as the provisional pole lap time.

But he slowed after crossing the start-finish line, the Ferrari appearing to hold off Piastre through turn one as McLaren launched its final timed effort behind him.

Stewards summoned both driver and team representatives after qualifying to review the incident and ultimately ruled that Hamilton had unduly obstructed Piastre, handing him a three-place grid demotion.

Speaking before the penalty was confirmed, Ferrari team principal Frederic Vasseur said any blame fell on the team, not Hamilton.

Vasyur said Sky Sports F1: “We told him (about Piastre) but it was too late.

“If anything goes wrong, it’s our fault.”

Hamilton himself said immediately after qualifying: “I was literally told when he was at the top behind me, so I had no idea he was coming. I thought everyone was out behind me. I was the first out, so I thought everyone had finished the lap.

“I think Charles was coming up behind me when I left pit lane, as far as I was aware.

“Crazy, because it was clear, and obviously it wasn’t intentional.”

‘A bit of a shock to me’ – Hamilton questions Ferrari’s final run strategy before Piastre blocks

Ferrari arguably could have avoided such a situation with Piastre entirely, however, if they had sent Hamilton back to the track to qualify earlier than his last time.

The Brit held provisional pole by a tenth of a second from Norris after the first time lapse of Q3. With just over three minutes remaining in the session he was sent out as the first car back on the circuit for the final run.

Norris was the second last driver to take to the track, Piastre was last. Hamilton did not improve his time on his final lap, whereas Norris did, edging him to pole by 0.012s.

And Hamilton admitted: “I don’t know why we went first, and it was a bit of a shock to me.

“I definitely didn’t like going at first, but it is what it is.

“I had a clear out-lap, and when I started my lap, I already had a snap in turn one and I was already a tenth and a half down. It just cascaded from there. So, the last lap was the worst lap, and all the other laps were really good. We obviously had the car on pole today, and I just couldn’t deliver.”

Hamilton also said pole position – which would be his first for a grand prix since the same event three years ago – “definitely got away from us”.

Ken Antonelli was given his three place grid penalty

In a separate incident moments later, Antonelli was placed under investigation for failing to slow down enough while taking Verstappen’s Red Bull into the final corner of the Hungaroring in the run-off area.

Antonelli said Sky Sports F1 After: “The yellow flag came out as I entered the corner so I did my best to lift. I lifted but left quite a bit less speed than before. It’s a shame.”

However, in their post-race investigation, the stewards ruled that Antonelli had in fact lifted the throttle earlier than in the previous lap when he passed Verstappen’s car when his speed was “slightly higher than the previous push lap”.

They concluded that although Mercedes had “reduced speed” it was “in our judgment, an inadequate and unsustainable one”. Although the more common penalty for failing to slow for yellow flags is a five-place grid demotion, the stewards took into account the “mitigation” of the fact that he had slowed to an extent and reduced it to three spots.

Sky Sports F1’s Hungarian GP schedule

Sunday 26th July
7.35am: F3 Feature Race
9.05am: Porsche Supercup
10.20am: F2 Feature Race
12.30pm: Hungarian GP Build-up: Grand Prix Sunday*
2pm: Hungarian Grand Prix*
4pm: Hungarian GP Reaction: Checkered Flag*
5pm: Ted’s Notebook*

*Also on Sky Sports main events

The Formula 1 Hungarian Grand Prix is ​​in Budapest with Sunday’s race at 2pm and the build-up from 12.30pm, live on Sky Sports F1 and Sky Sports Main Event. Stream Sky Sports now – no contract, cancel anytime