FIA confirms penalty decision for Lewis Hamilton after British Grand Prix yellow flag investigation. FIA confirms Lewis Hamilton verdict after British GP yellow flag investigation.

British GP 2026 | Hamilton loses podium after penalty? FIA announces final decision

The FIA has finally delivered its verdict following the investigation into Lewis Hamilton’s alleged yellow flag infringement. Here is the official decision and whether the Ferrari driver loses his third-place finish at the British Grand Prix.

Ferrari celebrated victory at Silverstone thanks to Charles Leclerc, while Lewis Hamilton crossed the line in third place. However, the seven-time Formula 1 World Champion remained under investigation after being accused of failing to respect yellow flags during the race, leaving uncertainty over whether he would keep his podium finish.

A difficult race for Hamilton

The British driver endured a challenging afternoon from the opening laps. He initially tried to keep Andrea Kimi Antonelli behind, but tyre degradation soon became a significant issue. Despite that, Lewis Hamilton fought back against George Russell and Max Verstappen as he attempted to reclaim the podium position he believed was within reach.

After Max Verstappen’s accident, most expected the Safety Car to come into the pits for one final lap of racing. Race Control even displayed the “Safety Car in this lap” message before reversing the decision moments later. Instead, the Safety Car remained on track until the chequered flag, denying Lewis Hamilton the opportunity to challenge for second place and preventing Ferrari from securing a one-two finish.

The focus then shifted to the stewards, who were investigating Lewis Hamilton for an alleged yellow flag infringement.

Do the stewards strip Hamilton of the podium?

“I can’t confirm anything. I’ve just been to see them, but I haven’t heard anything yet. They’ll probably penalise me any moment now, so I’ll almost certainly lose the podium. I passed a yellow flag and I didn’t see it. Yes, when it rains, it pours. We did a fantastic job. Congratulations to him and to the team. I would have loved to finish with a one-two, and we need to keep working like this in the next races. Overall, I’m mainly thinking about my own performance. Huge congratulations to Charles. On my side, we took off too much wing, I had massive understeer in the opening stint, I had a false start—it was just one thing after another. There are plenty of lessons to learn from today, but we’ll move forward.”

Following those comments, it seemed almost certain that Lewis Hamilton would receive a five-second penalty. However, several minutes later, Sky Sport F1 Italia reported that the stewards had instead decided to issue the Ferrari driver with only a reprimand.

The FIA soon confirmed that verdict. As a result, Lewis Hamilton keeps third place at Silverstone and ends the British Grand Prix weekend trailing championship leader Andrea Kimi Antonelli by 32 points in the drivers’ standings.

The stewards therefore showed leniency, allowing Lewis Hamilton to keep his podium result despite the incident. This decision ensures that the fight at the top of the championship standings remains intense as the season approaches its next crucial stages.