Mexico City GP penalties: Piastri, Colapinto and Gasly lose points as Hirakawa scores on F1 debut

The finishing order of the 2026 Mexico City Grand Prix changed significantly after the race, as stewards handed time penalties to Oscar Piastri, Franco Colapinto and Pierre Gasly. The decisions, confirmed in the hours after Monday's early-morning finish in Malaysia, cost McLaren and Alpine points and handed Haas stand-in Ryo Hirakawa a championship point on his Formula 1 debut. Meanwhile, Sergio Perez's 300th grand prix, in front of his home crowd, ended outside the points.

Piastri penalised for Lindblad collision

Piastri crossed the line seventh but was given a 10-second time penalty for the lap 59 collision with Arvid Lindblad at Turn 1, which put the Racing Bulls rookie into the wall and brought out the safety car. The stewards found Piastri was never fully alongside and could have avoided contact by moving further left. With 10 seconds added, he dropped to 13th in the final classification and lost six points.

Alpine pair punished for yellow flags

Both Alpine drivers were then penalised for not slowing enough under yellow flags. Colapinto, who had finished eighth, received a 10-second penalty and one super licence penalty point for a single-yellow sector, and fell to 15th. Gasly, originally 10th, was given a stop-and-go penalty for a double-yellow breach, which was converted to a 30-second time penalty and dropped him to 17th, the last classified finisher. He also received two penalty points.

Lawson and Hirakawa the big winners

Liam Lawson had started from the pit lane after being disqualified from qualifying over an MGU-K infringement, with Racing Bulls fitting a fresh power unit. He was 15th at the red-flag restart, recovered to ninth on the road and was promoted to seventh, worth six points. That lifts the New Zealander to 83 points, ninth in the standings, and stretches Racing Bulls' lead over Alpine for fifth in the constructors' table to 39 points.

Gabriel Bortoleto moved up to eighth for Audi and Isack Hadjar to ninth for Red Bull, after Hadjar had been spun by George Russell on the opening lap.

The biggest story was 10th place. Hirakawa, 32, was called up by Haas mid-weekend to replace Esteban Ocon and crossed the line 13th, 25.373 seconds behind the winner. The three penalties lifted him into 10th and his first F1 point. Haas team-mate Oliver Bearman retired after contact with Nico Hulkenberg, who was handed a 10-second penalty and finished 14th.

Perez's 300th start ends 16th

Perez marked his 300th grand prix at the Autodromo Hermanos Rodriguez, days after agreeing a Cadillac contract to 2029. It was a difficult afternoon. A sticking left-front wheel cost him time at his pit stop, and he collected a five-second penalty for speeding in the pit lane. He was classified 16th after Gasly's penalty, while team-mate Valtteri Bottas crashed out with a suspected suspension failure and was taken for precautionary checks. Cadillac remain without a point in their debut season.

Revised order, 7th to 17th

7 Lawson, 8 Bortoleto, 9 Hadjar, 10 Hirakawa, 11 Alex Albon, 12 Carlos Sainz, 13 Piastri, 14 Hulkenberg, 15 Colapinto, 16 Perez, 17 Gasly.

Key takeaways

• Piastri dropped from seventh to 13th with a 10-second penalty for hitting Lindblad.
• Colapinto and Gasly lost their points for yellow-flag breaches.
• Lawson went from pit-lane starter to seventh; Hirakawa scored a point on debut.
• Perez finished 16th on his 300th start, at home.

FAQ

Why was Oscar Piastri penalised in Mexico? For causing the collision with Arvid Lindblad at Turn 1 on lap 59. Stewards said he was never fully alongside and could have avoided it.

Did Ryo Hirakawa score points on his F1 debut? Yes. He finished 13th on the road and was promoted to 10th by penalties for Piastri, Colapinto and Gasly, earning one point.

How did Sergio Perez do in his home race? He finished 16th in his 300th grand prix after a slow pit stop and a five-second pit-lane speeding penalty.

Sources: The Race, Grande Premio, Dive Bomb, Speedcafe, GrandPrix.com, RacingNews365