Lewis Hamilton Avoids Grid Penalty After Yellow Flag Breach in São Paulo Sprint Qualifying

Lewis Hamilton has escaped a grid penalty despite being found guilty of failing to slow sufficiently for double yellow flags during qualifying for the São Paulo Grand Prix Sprint. The Ferrari driver instead received a reprimand, his first of the 2025 season, following a stewards’ investigation into the incident.

The breach occurred in Q2 on Friday when Charles Leclerc spun at Turn 10, bringing out the double-waved yellows. Hamilton’s onboard footage showed him passing the scene without a clear reduction in speed as he attempted to complete his lap and reach the start-finish line before the session ended.

Stewards’ Findings

In their report, the stewards confirmed Hamilton had not slowed adequately but accepted that the circumstances made it difficult for him to react in time.

“Towards the end of Q2, Car 16 [Leclerc] spun at the exit of Turn 10, triggering double-waved yellow flags. Shortly afterwards, Car 44 [Hamilton] approached the same corner and was just turning in when the double yellow light panels were activated on the left-hand side of the track,” the statement read.

“During the hearing, Hamilton explained that he did not see the light signal. The onboard footage confirms that the signal was only illuminated for a fraction of a second before he passed it. As the driver’s focus was clearly on the turn-in point, he was looking to the right-hand side of the track, thus the stewards find it credible that he did not actually perceive the signal.”

However, they also noted that Hamilton had seen Leclerc’s stationary Ferrari and a green light beyond the incident, meaning he should have realised he was in a yellow-flag zone.

“Looking into the telemetry, the stewards found that the driver reacted by hesitating whilst applying the throttle, but did not reduce speed as required,” the report continued.

Why No Grid Penalty?

Under normal circumstances, failing to slow for double yellow flags carries a five-place grid penalty, but the stewards ruled that a reprimand was appropriate for consistency with similar past cases where the yellow light was only briefly visible.

“In similar circumstances in the past, the stewards have deemed it appropriate to impose a reprimand rather than the standard five-place grid penalty. In terms of consistency, the stewards consider a reprimand to be sufficient in this case as well,” they concluded.

Sprint Grid and Championship Context

Hamilton’s infraction ultimately had little impact on his qualifying outcome, as he failed to reach SQ3 and will start 11th for Saturday’s Sprint.

At the front, Lando Norris claimed pole position for McLaren, with teammate and championship rival Oscar Piastri starting third. Max Verstappen will line up sixth after a difficult session.

The São Paulo Sprint promises to be another key moment in the 2025 title battle, with Norris leading Piastri by just one point heading into the weekend and Hamilton still searching for his first Ferrari podium since joining the team at the start of the season.

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