Confirmed: Penalty for Kimi, but not for today in Zandvoort!

Mercedes confirmed that the driver and championship leader, Kimi Antonelli, will receive a penalty for engine changes, but the team plans for it to be served at the Italian Grand Prix in Monza on 6 September.

What the penalty means for the result

Each driver has a limited number of different engine components they may use during the season, and two separate technical problems that happened to Antonelli left Mercedes with little choice, so the Italian driver will have to exceed the allowed limit before the end of the season.

"Kimi will probably lose a few positions in Monza and will start at the back, so we hope we can score as many points as possible here," Wolff said in Zandvoort.

Antonelli will start with a new power unit in Monza, and the size of the penalty will depend on how many different components Mercedes installs: the penalty will be at least 10 grid places, but if more elements are fitted he may be moved to the very back regardless of qualifying result.

Antonelli, who turns 20 on Tuesday, has a 53-point lead over second-placed champion Lewis Hamilton from Ferrari after finishing fourth in yesterday's Dutch sprint race, compared with seventh place for the seven-time world champion. Mercedes driver George Russell won the sprint and reduced the gap with his teammate to 56 points.

Neither Mercedes nor Russell have yet indicated at which race the Briton will receive the penalty. Today, Antonelli will start from third place in the race in the Netherlands at 15:00; ahead of him will be Russell, and pole position was taken by Lando Norris from McLaren.

Photo: press material from the event