FIA penalty-point shift slashes F1 licence points

Seven races into the 2025 Formula 1 season, only one penalty point has been issued, Franco Colapinto’s for failing to slow sufficiently under yellow flags in Barcelona, and none have come from on-track battles.

That sharp drop follows revised FIA guidelines introduced before the season. While the recommendations for sporting penalties stayed broadly the same, stewards were given far more flexibility on licence points, especially for collisions. Causing a collision no longer carries an automatic three-point recommendation, with stewards now able to apply anywhere from zero to three points depending on severity.

The change is already visible in race decisions. In China, Esteban Ocon received a 10-second time penalty for his clash with Colapinto but no penalty points, in line with the updated guidance that says: “Penalty points for causing [a collision] should be adjusted based on the severity of the incident caused.”

Other routine racing infringements have also been softened in the penalty-points guidance. Forcing another driver off the track now brings points only if stewards judge the move to have been “reckless,” while ignoring blue flags generally no longer carries penalty points. Collisions with “apparent deliberate or reckless intent” still draw four points.

The stakes have not changed. A driver who reaches 12 penalty points still receives an automatic race ban, as Kevin Magnussen did in 2024 when he was forced to miss the Sao Paulo Grand Prix.

Carlos Sainz, GPDA director and Williams driver, said that was exactly the distinction drivers had been pushing for. “Obviously driver penalty points is something that could result in a race ban,” Sainz told Motorsport.com. “And I think a driver should get a race ban if you're continuously dangerous towards your competitors, towards the marshals, or you're misbehaving towards FIA and stewards.”

He said drivers did not believe penalty points should be added for mistakes that were already punished in-race and did not put anyone at risk. “And that's what we pushed forward,” Sainz said. “And so far, to be honest, the FIA have been extremely helpful with that.” He also praised the governing body’s communication under race director Rui Marques, calling it “the most collaborative set of people I've worked with since Charlie.”

For drivers, the practical effect is a lower risk that hard racing will snowball into a ban threat later in the season. Oliver Bearman, who still tops the current penalty-points table with eight after spending much of last year close to a suspension, said the old system “was not really incentivising us to try anything, to race.” Under the revised approach, he said, drivers can attempt overtakes knowing a mistake may still bring a race penalty without necessarily creating the longer-term danger of missing a grand prix.