Charles Leclerc, Lewis Hamilton and Pierre Guthrie all risk being disqualified from China’s Grand Prix after car issues are discovered during post-race scrutiny.
Leclerc made an impressive finish to fifth place after getting in touch with teammate Hamilton and running a one-stop race that finished in front of Hamilton, who made his second stop. The damage naturally makes the car lighter, but the team is allowed to replace obviously damaged parts, weighing it on an end plate that lacks weight from the Ferrari, but with a spare front wing. When fuel was discharged, they were insufficient in both cases.
“After the race, there was a weight of car number 16, which weighed 800.0 kg. This is the minimum weight required under Article 4.1 of TR,” wrote FIA technology Jo Bauer. “Because the front wing was damaged (the missing FW end plate was recovered and measured in the car), the car was once again strong in the official spare front wing assembly of the car 16, weighing 800.5 kg.
“After this, the fuel was drained from the car and 2.0 liters of fuel was removed. The car was drained according to the drainage procedures submitted by the team in the legality document. The car weighed again (there is the car’s official front wing assembly), and weighed 799.0 kg, more than the damaged ones used during the race.
“This is less than 1.0 kg of weight required in Article 4.1 of TR, and therefore must be respected at all times during competition, so I am introducing this issue to the stewards for their consideration.”
Leclerc’s car was not only introduced to stewards because of its underweight, but Guthrie’s alpine was also weighed at 799.0kg when it removed fuel, putting both cars at risk of violating technical regulations.
George Russell lost qualification for similar issues after winning the Belgian Grand Prix last year, and Mercedes speculates that excessive tire wear may be playing. Guthrie completed the longest stint of the race. He had 46 laps on hard tires when he crossed 11th place, and Leclair’s final stint was 41 laps.
Hamilton’s car was compliant with weight limits, but the screwtineer left the thickness of the skid behind him below the minimum limit of 9mm, recording 8.6mm at two points and 8.5mm at another point. Both Hamilton and Leclair were disqualified from the 2023 US Grand Prix for similar issues.
If all three drivers are excluded from the results, Lance Straw Roll and Carlos Sainz will be promoted to points from the 12th and 13th respectively, with Esteban Ocon, Kimi Antonelli, Alex Albon and Oliver Bearman all also making profits.