Carlos Sainz was the only driver not to see the checkered flag at the United States Grand Prix at the Circuit Of The Americas on Sunday after suffering terminal damage during the race following a collision with Kimi Antonelli’s Mercedes.
Dueling through the tight and twisty start of the final sector, the Spaniard had a chance for a move down the inside of Turn 15, but clipped the Silver Arrow’s left rear tire and sent him into a spin.
Sainz was out in no time, with damage to his right front tyre, and he parked his Williams car between the last two corners of the track, while Antonelli finished outside the top ten.
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Reviewing the incident, the stewards ruled that Sainz was responsible for the collision: “Car 55 attempted to overtake car 12 from the inside at Turn 15 and a collision occurred between the two cars near the apex.
“The driver of car 55 claimed that he had expected the driver of car 12 to give him space at the apex, but car 12 turned early and car 55 locked 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 mirror of car 12. Therefore, under the Driving Standards Guidelines, car 55 had not earned the right to leave space at the apex.”
As a result, and because he was unable to serve the penalty during the race, Sainz (‘Car 12’) was handed a five-place grid penalty for this weekend’s Mexico City Grand Prix, the scene of his last F1 victory, which he captured in 2024.
Carlos Sainz is OUT after hooking up with Kimi Antonelli! 💥
This is what happened… 👇#F1 #USGP pic.twitter.com/OIIUH031CO
— Formula 1 (@F1) October 19, 2025
It wasn’t a disastrous weekend for the Spaniard as he finished third in Saturday’s sprint and once again demonstrated his underlying pace. But in battle 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 season.
Speaking about his collision, Sainz told williamsf1.com: “It’s a shame to end the race this way as the car had great pace today. I had done a similar move at Bearman a few laps earlier so I tried that inside the line with Antonelli at Turn 15.
“He opened the row and closed the door more abruptly than I expected. I tried to react by hitting the brakes to avoid contact, but it was too late and we hit each other.
“I was behind so I accept my fault and in the end it’s a shame because it cost us both the race. We were fast so it hurts not to convert it into more points.”
