Carlos Sainz was the only driver not to see the chequered flag during Sunday’s United States Grand Prix, at The Circuit Of The Americas, after he suffered terminal race damage following a collision with Kimi Antonelli’s Mercedes.
Duelling through the tight and twisty beginning of the final sector, the Spaniard chanced a move down the inside of turn 15, but clipped the Silver Arrow’s left rear tyre and sent it into a spin.
Sainz was out in an instant, with damage to his right front tyre, and he parked his Williams car between the final two corners of the track, while Antonelli continued on to finish outside of the top ten.
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In reviewing the incident, the stewards ruled that Sainz was responsible for the clash: “Car 55 attempted an inside overtake on Car 12 at Turn 15 and a collision between the two cars occurred at the apex.
“The driver of Car 55 maintained that he had expected the driver of Car 12 to leave him space at the apex but Car 12 turned in early and Car 55 locked brakes when it became clear that a collision was unavoidable.
“At no point prior to the apex was the front axle of Car 55 alongside or ahead of the mirror of Car 12. Therefore, according to the Driving Standards Guidelines, Car 55 had not earned a right to be left space at the apex.”
As a result, and with not being able to serve the penalty during the race, Sainz (‘Car 12’) was slapped with a five-place grid penalty for this weekend’s Mexico City Grand Prix instead, the scene of his latest F1 triumph, which he seized in 2024.
Carlos Sainz is OUT after making contact with Kimi Antonelli! 💥
Here’s what happened… 👇#F1 #USGP pic.twitter.com/OIIUH031CO
— Formula 1 (@F1) October 19, 2025
For the Spaniard, it was hardly a disastrous weekend given that he finished third during Saturday’s sprint and demonstrated his underlying pace once more. But in battling with a Mercedes so early on in the race, for seventh place, the resulting retirement represents another missed opportunity that has dominated much of his 2025 campaign.
On his clash, Sainz told williamsf1.com: “It’s a shame to end the race that way as the car had great pace today. I had done a similar move on Bearman some laps before, so I tried that inside line with Antonelli into turn 15.
“He opened the line and then closed the door more abruptly than what I was expecting, I tried to react by slamming on the brakes to avoid contact but it was too late and we touched.
“I was behind so I accept my part of fault and ultimately it’s a shame as it cost the race for both of us. We were quick, so it hurts not to convert it into more points.”
