Valtteri Bottas was due to serve a grid penalty on his return to the F1 grid this weekend in Australia.
Valtteri Bottas will no longer face a grid penalty at the upcoming Australian Grand Prix due to a regulation change by the FIA. He will make his F1 return in Melbourne with Cadillac, as the team makes its debut in Formula 1. Initially, Bottas was expected to start at a disadvantage with the grid penalty looming over him following the incident at the 2024 Abu Dhabi Grand Prix. The FIA updated the regulations regarding grid penalties, stating that penalties are only valid for 12 months and limited to 15 places. As Bottas received the penalty almost 15 months ago, it has been removed from his record, allowing him to start the race unimpeded.
