Kimi Antonelli avoids penalty at Chinese Grand Prix thanks to Lando Norris

Mar 13, 2026 - 11:30

MELBOURNE, AUSTRALIA - MARCH 08: Andrea Kimi Antonelli of Italy and Mercedes AMG Petronas F1 Team and Lando Norris of Great Britain and McLaren talk on the drivers parade prior to the F1 Grand Prix of Australia at Albert Park Grand Prix Circuit on March 08, 2026 in Melbourne, Australia. (Photo by Peter Fox/Getty Images) | Getty Images

Kimi Antonelli will start second in the F1 Sprint race at the Chinese Grand Prix.

And he has Lando Norris to thank, at least in part.

For the second consecutive race Mercedes turned in a strong qualifying performance, locking out the front row for the F1 Sprint race at the Formula 1 Chinese Grand Prix a week after qualifying one-two at the Australian Grand Prix. George Russell again took pole position, while second-year driver Antonelli slid into P2.

But Antonelli’s spot on the grid was at risk due to an incident with Norris during the qualifying session. During SQ2 Antonelli came out of pit lane and entered the track ahead of Norris, who was on what looked to be a flying lap. The McLaren driver came onto the radio to his team, reporting that he “was going to push that lap but [Antonelli] got in the way.”

Race officials noted the incident for further investigation, and following the qualifying session both Norris and Antonelli were summoned to meet with the stewards.

Adding to the drama was the fact that Norris had qualified third, one spot behind Antonelli.

But following the hearing, the stewards decided that no further action was necessary, and it was due to how Norris described the incident to race officials. As noted in the FIA decision, Norris told race officials that he was on a “pushing warm up lap,” and not trying to set a meaningful time:

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. 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 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 remains in P2 for the F1 Sprint race, while Norris will start behind him in third.