Lewis Hamilton avoids penalty; Ferrari fined over Belgian GP pit‑lane incident

During the 2026 Belgian Grand Prix at Spa‑Francorchamps, Lewis Hamilton’s Mercedes struck a Ferrari mechanic as he left the pit box after receiving the green release light. The mechanic fell but escaped injury. FIA stewards opened an investigation for a possible unsafe release and concluded that the incident was caused by communication and procedural errors on Ferrari’s side. Consequently, Hamilton received no sporting penalty and retained his fourth‑place finish, while Ferrari was fined €30,000 (with €10,000 suspended for twelve months) and ordered to submit a safety‑procedure report within 14 days.

Hamilton also served a five‑second penalty for an earlier first‑lap collision with George Russell, a sanction he and Russell described as a racing incident. Hamilton said the pit‑lane scare reminded him of Kimi Raikkonen’s 2018 Bahrain pit‑lane accident. He noted that without the practice crash and the pit‑lane incident his performance could have challenged for victory. The weekend left him second in the Drivers’ Championship, 45 points behind the leader.