Oscar Piastri Risks F1 Race Ban as FIA U-Turn on Brazil GP Penalty

The FIA have issued a statement clarifying the punishment handed to Oscar Piastri following the Brazilian Grand Prix.

On Sunday evening, McLaren star Lando Norris extended his lead atop the Formula One championship table with a win at the Brazilian Grand Prix in Sao Paulo.

Teammate Piastri, who led the Drivers' Championship for the majority of the season, finished the race in fifth, while reigning champion Max Verstappen amazingly fought to finish the race in third having started the race from the pit lane after Red Bull made changes to his car.

Unfortunately for Piastri, an incident involving Mercedes' Kimi Antonelli and the Ferrari of Charles Leclerc earned the McLaren star a 10-second penalty that could prove massively consequential in the title race.

But now, the FIA have made a u-turn on the penalty handed to the Australian which could have a significant impact on his chances of receiving a race ban before the end of the season.

Piastri's incident with Antonelli and Leclerc saw him earn a penalty. (Image: Peter Fox/Getty Images)

After starting fourth on the grid, Piastri found himself fighting with Mercedes' Kimi Antonelli for second place into Turn 1 at the restart following Gabriel Bortoleto's crash.

However, a lock-up saw him hit Antonelli's Mercedes, sending the rookie into Leclerc's car and ending the Ferrari driver's race.

After the incident, the FIA decided to hand Piastri a 10-second time penalty while releasing a statement confirming that he had compiled a total of eight points over the last 12 months.

As per race rules, any driver that amasses a total of 12 penalty points within a 12-month period, is automatically given a one race ban, meaning Piastri was just four points away from a suspension.

However, the FIA have now clarified that they had made a mistake in their initial statement and that, instead of sitting on eight penalty points, Piastri actually only had been given six over the past year.

Although this is obviously good news for Piastri fans, it does not change the fact that the controversial penalty during the race has left him with a much harder task if he hopes to win the title.

Piastri now faces an uphill battle to win the championship. (Image: Hector Vivas/Getty Images)

Reacting to the penalty motorsport commentator Alex Brundle wrote on X: “Disagree with that penalty for Piastri - He’s alongside in the braking zone; Antonelli has the real estate to get through side-by-side, because Leclerc gives him big space on the inside."

As it stands, Piastri is now 24 points behind Norris in the Drivers' Championship table with just three race weekends left on the 2025 calendar.