The possible explanations behind Ferrari’s double disqualification at the F1 China Grand Prix are theorized.
Lewis Hamilton and Charles Leclair disqualified for separate technical infringements with respect to their respective Ferraris after a post-race check in Shanghai on Sunday after the Grand Prix.
Seven-time world champion Hamilton finished sixth on the road, but his car was found to have excessive plank wear, but his teammate Leclerc, who returned to fifth, was 1kg under the weight limit of the 800kg car.
Hamilton’s exclusion in particular faces the height problem that Ferrari rides early, raising his eyebrows in the whispers of the F1 paddock.
After a difficult opening race in Australia, when Leclerc and Hamilton could only finish in 8th and 10th place, there was a suggestion that Ferrari had to lift the car to avoid wear on the boards.
Ferrari was unable to complete a race simulation with Hamilton on the final day of preseason testing in Bahrain. Sky Sports F1 pit lane reporter Ted Kravitz believes this important lack of running could lie behind the team’s early grief.
“I don’t think that the wear on the boards happened in the first dry race is insignificant,” Kravits told the Sky Sports F1 show.
“I feel that’s something that has been carried over from the Bahrain test, where they couldn’t do race simulations, and the first dry race Lewis did was the Chinese Grand Prix.
“There were a variety of things about getting wet and having to lift the car or raise it for Melbourne, and they lowered it. That’s what we’re talking about here: if there’s wear on the board, that’s because you have to raise and lower the car in an unexpected way that’s not being tested.
“So, they’re so good in the team, they’re so smart to catch them, they’re too smart to catch them on the wear on the planks, they’ve caught them, they’ve caught them, they’ve caught them, they’ve caught them, they’ve caught them, they’ve caught them, they’ve caught them, they’ve caught them, they’ve caught them, they’ve caught them, they’ve caught them, they’ve caught them, they’ve caught them, they’ve caught them, they’ve caught them, they’ve caught them, they’ve caught them, they’ve got them, they’ve got them, they’ve got them, they’ve got them, they’ve got them, they’ve got them, they’ve got them, they’ve got them, they’ve got them, they’ve got them, they’ve got them, I think there’s something to do there.
“I think there’s probably a bit of a story, which I wouldn’t find or find mid-season about wear on this board.”
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Meanwhile, Hamilton and Leclair are on track to drive their driver positions, sitting in ninth and 10th place respectively, with just nine and eight points.
Hamilton was able to win his first pole position in the Chinese sprint race before the team’s challenge faded, and win at Ferrari, leading to Bernie Collins wondering whether the SF-25 was “too peaky.”
“Bringing cars in Australia due to bumps is the norm for everyone and is harmful to downforce and board wear,” Collins said.
“In Australia, the Ferrari wasn’t that strong. Part of it was dependent on strategy, but the performance in qualifying wasn’t that strong. So there may be cars that are very sensitive to the high ride quality in terms of aero performance. These cars are all ground-effective cars, but are more sensitive than the others.
“You’ll be surprised that Chinese sprints weren’t a sufficient indication that they’re illegal for board wear. If they have what we call ‘peeky’ ride height, it’s a very small optimal ride height that you can have a great aerodynamic platform, and that’s a car problem.
“Because of all these track ranges, I want to be worthy of running a variety of ride heights. For example, Austria has a strong curb, so I want to add a bit of ride to it.
“Maybe the aero platform is too peaky.”