F1 penalties explained: time penalties, grid drops and race bans

Formula 1 penalties are decided by the stewards, a panel of officials at every Grand Prix. They range from a warning, called a reprimand, through time penalties and drive-throughs to grid drops, disqualification and race bans. The most common in a race is a 5- or 10-second time penalty, usually served at the driver’s next pit stop. Here is how each penalty works under the 2026 rules.

Who decides penalties in F1?

The stewards. For each event the FIA appoints three or four stewards, one of whom chairs the panel, and the national motorsport body adds one more. The panel often includes a former racing driver. The race director runs the session and reports incidents, but the stewards decide whether to penalise anyone. They can use video and data, and they only penalise a driver who was wholly or predominantly to blame for an incident.

Penalty decisions are shown as race control messages, which you can follow during every session on F1 live timing.

What is a 5-second or 10-second penalty in F1?

It is the most common race penalty. The driver serves it the next time they come into the pit lane: the car must stand still in its pit box for five or ten seconds before the mechanics are allowed to touch it. Only then can the tyre change start.

If the driver makes no further pit stop, the penalty is simply added to their race time at the finish. That is why a driver can cross the line in one position and be classified lower in the F1 race results.

What is a drive-through penalty?

The driver must enter the pit lane and drive through it at the speed limit without stopping, then rejoin the race. They must take it within two crossings of the finish line after being notified, and they cannot serve it while the safety car or virtual safety car is in use, unless they were already in the pit lane. Because it costs the time of a full trip through the pit lane, it is a heavier penalty than a 10-second penalty served during a planned stop.

What is a stop-and-go penalty?

The heaviest in-race time penalty. The driver must come into the pit lane, stop in their pit box for ten seconds and rejoin, with no work allowed on the car. It costs more time than any of the other in-race penalties.

What happens if a penalty is given at the end of a race?

If a drive-through or stop-and-go is given in the last three laps, or any penalty is given after the race, time is added instead:

• 5-second penalty: 5 seconds
• 10-second penalty: 10 seconds
• Drive-through: 20 seconds
• Stop-and-go: 30 seconds

If a driver retires before serving a penalty, the stewards can give them a grid penalty for their next race. The penalties above cannot be appealed.

How do grid penalties work in F1?

A grid penalty moves a driver back a set number of places from their qualifying position on the starting grid. The stewards can give one for an incident in a race or in qualifying, such as impeding another car. Drivers who collect more than 15 places of penalties for the same race start behind everyone who qualified normally.

How do F1 engine penalties work?

Each driver has a limited number of power unit parts per season. In 2026, with the new engines, that is four engines, four turbochargers and four exhaust sets, plus three MGU-Ks, three energy stores (batteries) and three sets of control electronics. The first time a driver uses one part more than the limit, they get a 10-place grid penalty. Each further extra part of that type adds five places. New parts often come in groups, so engine penalties can quickly pass 15 places and send a driver to the back.

How many reprimands lead to a grid penalty?

A reprimand is a formal warning with no immediate effect on the result. In 2026, a driver who gets five reprimands in a season, at least four of them for driving offences, receives a 10-place grid penalty.

How many penalty points lead to a race ban in F1?

Twelve. On top of a penalty, the stewards can add penalty points to a driver’s superlicence. Each point stays on the licence for 12 months. A driver who reaches 12 points within a 12-month period is banned from the next event. Kevin Magnussen became the first driver suspended under the system, missing the 2024 Azerbaijan Grand Prix.

How do track limits penalties work?

A driver leaves the track if no part of the car stays on it. The white lines count as part of the track but the kerbs do not. In qualifying, the lap time is deleted. In a race, the standard approach is a black-and-white warning flag after the third offence and a 5-second time penalty for the fourth. Leaving the track to gain a lasting advantage, for example by cutting a corner to pass a rival, is investigated separately.

Other penalties to know

• Speeding in the pit lane: a fine of €100 per km/h over the limit in practice and qualifying, up to €1,000, and a time penalty in the race
• Disqualification: the most serious sanction for a single event, such as a car found to break the technical rules
• Two-compound rule: in a dry race, a driver who does not use two different tyre compounds is disqualified. F1 tyre compounds explained has the details

Penalties can change the championship order after the flag, so the F1 standings and each 2026 race weekend page are updated once the official classification is published.