F1 driver handed penalty for Australian GP months before 2026 season begins

December 19, 2025 Oliver Obel

A quirk of timing in Formula 1’s rulebook will see Valtteri Bottas begin the 2026 season with an immediate disadvantage, despite the incident behind it dating back more than a year.

Under the FIA regulations in force at the time, a five-place grid penalty issued to Bottas after the 2024 Abu Dhabi Grand Prix remains valid until it is served. That provision means the sanction will be applied at the opening round of the 2026 season in Melbourne.

Australian broadcaster NINE News reported that the FIA has confirmed the penalty will remain in effect, even as the sport prepares to enter a new technical era.

The 2026 Formula 1 campaign will open in March with the Australian Grand Prix at Albert Park, ushering in sweeping regulation changes. The revised rules are expected to produce smaller, lighter cars designed to improve racing, while the grid will expand to 22 drivers with Cadillac joining the championship as an 11th team.

Cadillac has chosen an experienced lineup for its debut season, naming Sergio Perez alongside Bottas. For Bottas, 36, the move marks a return to Formula 1 after stepping away from the grid at the end of 2024.

His comeback, however, comes with unfinished business.

During the 2024 Abu Dhabi Grand Prix, Bottas then driving for Kick Sauber collided with Haas driver Kevin Magnussen. Stewards ruled Bottas responsible for the incident and issued a five-place grid penalty.

The official FIA decision stated that the sanction would be applied at “the next Race in which the driver participates.” With Bottas absent from Formula 1 throughout 2025, the wording means the penalty carries forward to his first race back.

An FIA spokesperson told NINE News there is no mechanism under the old framework to revise or cancel the punishment.

“Currently, the penalty will stand, as there is no mechanism to retroactively amend the penalty that was applied under the regulations in force at the time,” the spokesperson said. “The change of regulation is intended to avoid similar anomalous situations in the future.”

That change will take effect in 2026. Under the updated rules, grid penalties will expire if they are not served within a 12-month period. The FIA has described the revised approach as: “A drop of any number of grid positions at the driver's next Sprint or Race in which the driver participates in the subsequent twelve-month period.”

The update is designed to prevent sanctions from carrying across seasons, making Bottas’ case one of the last examples of a rule that Formula 1 is now moving to retire.

Sources: FIA, NINE News