FIA Reveals Extent of Lewis Hamilton Infringement After Fourth Penalty in Three Weekends 😮😲

Lewis Hamilton’s difficult run of Formula 1 penalties has continued in dramatic fashion, with the FIA revealing that the Ferrari star was caught speeding in the Hungarian Grand Prix pit lane by just 0.1 km/h.

Hamilton was officially recorded at 80.1 km/h in an 80 km/h pit-lane zone, resulting in a five-second time penalty that ultimately dropped him from fourth to fifth in the final classification. The sanction marked Hamilton’s fourth penalty across the last three race weekends, adding another frustrating twist to his 2026 campaign.

The punishment came during a race in which Hamilton had been fighting strongly near the front and appeared capable of challenging for a podium finish. Ferrari eventually brought him into the pits under the Virtual Safety Car, but the stop became a major turning point.

The FIA’s official documentation confirmed the infringement, while the stewards’ decision left no room for interpretation: the Ferrari had exceeded the 80 km/h limit by 0.1 km/h.

That tiny margin was enough to trigger the standard five-second penalty.

And the consequences were significant.

Hamilton crossed the finish line in fourth place, but after the penalty was applied, he was classified fifth, with Ferrari teammate Charles Leclerc moving ahead of him.

The decision has nevertheless generated plenty of discussion because the infringement was so marginal.

Former F1 driver and Sky Sports F1 pundit Anthony Davidson admitted he was puzzled after examining Hamilton’s onboard footage. Davidson said he struggled to identify where Hamilton had clearly exceeded the pit-lane limit and suggested the timing of the speed-limiter activation may have been extremely close to the relevant line.

Ferrari team principal Fred Vasseur offered an explanation of what went wrong.

According to Vasseur, Hamilton had locked a wheel during the pit entry, costing the team time, and then may have attempted to optimize his pit-lane limiter release too aggressively. Vasseur described it as a “succession of mistakes”, rather than one major error.

That explanation is important because the penalty did not happen in isolation.

Hamilton had already been penalized at the British Grand Prix for a false start and then received another sanction after his collision with George Russell at the Belgian Grand Prix. In Hungary, he was penalized for impeding during qualifying before receiving the pit-lane speeding penalty during the race.

That brought his total to four penalties in just three rounds.

For Hamilton, the frustration is even greater because Ferrari’s strategy may have cost him an opportunity to fight for the podium. After the race, the seven-time world champion argued that his tyres were still in good condition and suggested that the pit stop had not been necessary.

Vasseur, however, acknowledged that Ferrari’s weekend had been filled with several small errors that ultimately compounded into a much bigger problem.

The Hungarian GP had initially looked extremely promising for Hamilton. He had been rapid throughout the weekend and even topped FP2 before narrowly missing pole position to Lando Norris by just 0.012 seconds in qualifying.

Instead of celebrating a potential podium, Hamilton left Budapest with another penalty, another lost position and another reminder of how unforgiving Formula 1 can be.

The five-second punishment may have come from only 0.1 km/h, but its impact was far greater.

Now, as F1 heads into the summer break, Hamilton and Ferrari face a crucial reset. The speed is clearly there — but if the Scuderia wants to turn that pace into victories, it will need to eliminate the costly mistakes that have repeatedly taken the spotlight away from Hamilton’s performances.

And after four penalties in three weekends, Ferrari will know that the margin for another mistake is becoming increasingly small.