F1 LIVE | Norris 'statement win' celebrated by UK media, Verstappen reacts to nightmare Austrian GP

Kimi Antonelli has been handed a three-place grid penalty for the British Grand Prix and two penalty points on his super license following his Lap 1 collision with Max Verstappen at the Austrian Grand Prix.

The Mercedes rookie locked up into Turn 3 and slid into the Red Bull driver, ending both of their races before the first lap was completed. Speaking to GPblog in the paddock, Antonelli took full responsibility, saying, “I apologised to him… I feel very sorry towards my team because it was a mistake from my side. I also ended his race, and that’s definitely not what I want.”

The FIA stewards reviewed the incident and concluded that no other car influenced the outcome placing full blame on Antonelli. While the Italian did point to avoiding Liam Lawson and hitting the dirty part of the track as contributing factors, the stewards were firm in their verdict.

The grid drop will be applied at the next race Antonelli takes part in, the British Grand Prix. For the Italian rookie, it’s a painful lesson on the big stage, and one that now carries consequences into Silverstone.

Max Verstappen’s Austrian Grand Prix was over before it had even begun, with the Dutchman forced to retire on the opening lap following contact with Mercedes rookie Kimi Antonelli at Turn 1.

After a frustrating qualifying left him starting seventh, Verstappen found himself caught in the midfield melee. “We had a good start, which was already a nice improvement,” he told GPblog and other media.

“But in Turn 3 the race was over. I didn’t know what happened at first, but the car was too damaged to continue.” It was a major blow in the championship fight, especially as McLaren walked away with another one-two.

Reflecting on the incident and the weekend as a whole, Verstappen struck a calm and reflective tone. “We weren’t where we wanted to be in terms of pace,” he admitted, “so we need to analyze things and come back stronger.”

As for the collision, Verstappen said he reviewed the footage after returning to the garage and didn’t dwell on it: “Every driver has made a mistake like that. It’s not ideal, but that’s racing.” With three wins already this season, Verstappen knows bad luck is part of the game but losing valuable points on a McLaren-dominated weekend stings nonetheless.