Hamilton demoted from front row for impeding Piastri

Lewis Hamilton has lost his front row start and been handed a three-place grid penalty for impeding Oscar Piastri in qualifying for the Hungarian Grand Prix.

Piastri was just starting his final lap in Q3 when he approached Hamilton – who had just completed his attempt – at Turn 1, and the Ferrari driver was in the middle of the circuit, forcing Piastri to take evasive action. Hamilton stated he was not informed that he had another car on a fast lap behind him, but admitted he had suspected he had blocked the McLaren.

“We were quickest throughout qualifying, so it definitely got away from us,” Hamilton said. “I think my mind is just elsewhere right this second because, at the end, once I finished my lap, I don’t know if I got in the way of someone. So, I’m just trying to run that through my mind because I wasn’t aware anyone was coming.”

Hamilton had provisionally qualified in second place – just 0.012s behind Lando Norris – but has now been demoted to fifth, provisionally promoting Charles Leclerc to the front row, with Kimi Antonelli and Piastri making up row two.

“At the approach to Turn 1, Car 44 [Hamilton] was travelling at a significantly reduced speed on the racing line while Car 81 [Piastri] was approaching on a push lap,” the stewards’ decision read.

“The driver of Car 44 explained that he had just completed a fast lap and did not receive the team's radio message regarding the approaching Car 81 until the latter was already in close proximity. He further stated that, due to the positioning of his car on the track, Car 81 was not visible in his mirrors.

“Car 81, which was on a push lap, was forced to take avoiding action by running wide and being obliged to abort the lap. Having examined the available evidence, the stewards determined that Car 44 unnecessarily impeded Car 81 during qualifying.”

The grid remains provisional as Antonelli is also under investigation for a yellow flag infringement that could result in a grid penalty for the championship leader.