Carlos Sainz was the only driver not to see the checkered flag on Sunday at the United States Grand Prix, at the Circuit of the Americas, after suffering terminal damage in the race following a collision with the Mercedes of Kimi Antonelli.
Dueling in the tight and twisty start to the final sector, the Spaniard attempted a descent on the inside of Turn 15, but clipped the Silver Arrow’s left rear tire and sent it spinning.
Sainz was taken out in an instant, with a damaged right front tire, and he parked his Williams car between the final two corners of the track, while Antonelli continued to finish outside the top ten.
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Reviewing the incident, the stewards ruled that Sainz was responsible for the collision: “Car 55 attempted an inside pass of car 12 at turn 15 and a collision between the two cars occurred at the apex.
“The driver of car 55 maintained that he expected the driver of car 12 to give him space at the apex, but car 12 turned early and car 55 jammed on the brakes when it became clear that a collision was inevitable.
“At no time before the apex was the front axle of car 55 next to or in front of the rearview mirror of car 12. Therefore, according to the Driving Standards Guidelines, car 55 was not entitled to any space left at the apex.”
As a result, and having been unable to serve the penalty during the race, Sainz (‘Car 12’) was handed a five-place grid penalty for this weekend’s Mexico Grand Prix, the scene of his latest F1 triumph, which he takes 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 wasn’t a disastrous weekend as he finished third in Saturday’s sprint and once again demonstrated his underlying pace. But in battling with a Mercedes so early in the race, for seventh place, the resulting retirement represents another missed opportunity that has dominated much of his 2025 campaign.
Commenting on his clash, Sainz told williamsf1.com: “It’s a shame to end the race this way because the car had good pace today. I had made a similar move on Bearman a few laps before, so I tried that inside line with Antonelli in turn 15.
“He opened the line then closed the door more abruptly than I expected. I tried to react by braking suddenly to avoid contact but it was too late and we touched.
“I was late so I accept my share of the blame and ultimately it’s a shame because it cost us both the race. We were fast, so it hurts not to convert that into more points.”
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