FIA explain Lewis Hamilton punishment after dramatic George Russell collision at Belgian Grand Prix

George Russell was involved in a dramatic collision on the opening lap of the Belgian Grand Prix with Lewis Hamiliton, leading to a punishment for the seven-time world champion.

The Mercedes driver has seen his bid for the 2026 drivers’ championship take another hit as he had to retire from the race this weekend at Spa.

It means that he will receive no points for his world championship bid, seeing him lose ground on his teammate and title rival Kimi Antonelli, who would go on to win the race.

Hamilton appeared to be at fault for the incident; at least that is the reading from the FIA, as they have given the Ferrari driver a five-second penalty for causing the incident.

The seven-time world champion served his penalty in the pits, with his team not being allowed to touch his car until the car has been sat stationary for five seconds.

🚨 | HAMILTON AND RUSSELL CONTACT MOMENT!!

📻 Hamilton: "Car crossed over in front of me. I was right behind another car, so I had no front end." pic.twitter.com/Qp7OoJo3rd

— La Gazzetta Ferrari (@GazzettaFerrari) July 19, 2026

Hamilton was straight on the team radio to defend his actions in the incident, as he said: “Car crossed over in front of me. I was right behind another car, so I had no front end.”

Russell appeared to be quite emotional in his interview with Sky Sports after the collision, after getting back to the pits following the collision.

He said: "I just got totally swallowed up down the straight," Russell told reporters back in the Spa paddock, before Hamilton was issued with a five-second penalty by the stewards.

"I lost three positions down the straight down into turn 5 and then the incident was a racing incident. Maybe I could have gone a bit wider or he could have braked a bit more.

"The incident wouldn't have happened if I had the speed down the straight. I'm very, very disappointed."

Hamilton’s Ferrari teammate Charles Leclerc was involved in a collision just a number of laps later at the same corner, as he made contact with McLaren’s Oscar Piastri.

Leclerc would then progress past the Australian at the corner, and it appeared that this had an impact on the McLaren car as Hamilton, who was nearby during the incident, also overtook Piastri within a couple of laps following the incident.

However, while the seven-time world champion got a punishment from the FIA for his collision, Leclerc would not.

FIA explain why they penalised Lewis Hamilton at the Belgian Grand Prix

The FIA stewards said: 'The Stewards reviewed video, team radio and in-car video evidence. Approaching Turn 5 on the opening lap, Car 63 attempted an overtake around the outside of Car 44 and had established sufficient overlap to be entitled to racing room. Car 44 remained on the inside.

'During the corner, Car 44 experienced understeer and, despite attempting to avoid Car 63 by applying corrective steering, made contact with the right-hand side of Car 63 with its left-front wheel. The Stewards determined that Car 63 remained within the available racing room and that the collision was caused by Car 44 being unable to maintain sufficient separation.

'The Stewards recognise several mitigating circumstances. Car 44 acknowledged the presence of Car 63, attempted to leave appropriate racing room and made a genuine attempt to avoid contact. The collision resulted from a loss of front-end grip rather than from an aggressive or deliberate manoeuvre.

'In addition, the incident occurred on the opening lap, where reduced grip and compressed racing conditions are recognised.

For these reasons, while Car 44 was wholly at fault for the collision, the Stewards consider that a 5-second Time Penalty, rather than the standard 10-second Time Penalty, is the appropriate penalty in accordance with the FIA Penalty Guidelines.'