Mercedes overturns Kimi Antonelli’s penalty in Australia
Kimi Antonelli received a 5-second penalty at the Australian Grand Prix for an unsafe release. This has now been cancelled, and he is back in 4th place.
The Mercedes team succeeded in having the penalty imposed by the FIA on Andrea Kimi Antonelli overturned, which had cost him fourth place at the Australian Grand Prix. The team had filed a request for revision with the stewards after a penalty for a dangerous pit exit. Initially, the five-second penalty added to the Italian’s race time had demoted him behind Alex Albon.
The penalty had been imposed after Antonelli’s second stop to switch to intermediate tires, when he came out just in front of Nico Hülkenberg, forcing the German to slow down. However, the stewards examined the revision request submitted by Mercedes and summoned the team representatives as well as those from Williams.
After analysis, the commissioners acknowledged the existence of a new, significant, and relevant element, they state in a press release.
Reason: Mercedes provided images from the onboard camera located on the roll hoop of Kimi Antonelli’s car, which were not available at the time of the initial decision. These images, retrieved after the race, were deemed essential by the stewards.
After reviewing the new videos, including one taken from the helicopter, the commissioners decided to cancel the penalty imposed on Antonelli (document no. 43).
« The new images clearly show that car No. 12 only entered the fast lane of the pits at a significant distance and only after the driver checked his mirrors to ensure the presence of car No. 27 (Nico Hülkenberg). Furthermore, the camera angle confirms that Antonelli had enough space to pass without endangering the McLaren mechanics », explains the FIA statement.
A very good news for the young Mercedes driver, who therefore takes back the 4th place after having secured for the very first race of his F1 career, unlike the other rookies…
