Chinese GP: Shock double disqualification for Ferrari – CSN News

Lewis Hamilton and Charles Leclerc were both disqualified today from the Chinese Grand Prix, which took place on March 23.

Ferrari has, in an unbelievable turn of events, failed to score any points for the crucial Constructors Championship.  Even though we have only had two races in the new season, it is not what they expected.

Why was Ferrari’s new driver Lewis Hamilton disqualified from the race?

Lewis Hamilton was disqualified for a rearmost-skid issue. The report of a Technical Delegate highlighted that, when the skid wear on Hamilton’s car after the Chinese Grand Prix was checked, the rearmost skid was below the required minimum thickness of 9mm.

A hearing was held after the stewards were notified. It was then confirmed in writing that the British driver would be disqualified from Sunday’s race.  The official document detailing the findings of hearing stated that:

The plank assembly for Car 44 measured at 8.6mm on the LHS (car centreline), 8.6mm on the RHS (car side), and 8.6mm on both sides (LHS).  This is below Article 3.5.9’s minimum thickness of 9mm.

Ferrari confirmed in the meantime that this violation was not mitigated by any circumstances and attributed it to an honest mistake.  This has unfortunately led to the standard disqualification penalty being applied.

Ferrari’s Charles Leclerc is disqualified for a weight violation

Charles Leclerc is the second Ferrari driver to be disqualified.  His disqualification was due to his car’s weight being below the minimum required by technical regulations.  Leclerc’s SF-25 weighed 1kg less than the minimum weight, according to the report following a steward’s investigation.

But that was not the end of it. A third disqualification, this time for Alpine’s Pierre Gasly, was announced.  The car’s weight was also under the minimum requirement, so Alpine remains the only team to have scored a point in this season.

Who benefitted from the Chinese GP post-disqualifications?

The disqualifications brought unexpectedly better results to some drivers.  Leclerc originally placed in P5, and Hamilton P6, but drivers from P7-P10 all gained.  Esteban Ocon was able to gain two positions, as were Kimi Antoniolli, Alex Albon and birthday boy Alex Albon.

Lance Stroll & Carlos Sainz both ended up with points after moving from P11 to the top 10, as Pierre Gasly was originally ranked in P11.

All these disqualifications and penalties, and we’re only on race two – this is turning out to be quite a season.

See what Japan has in store for us in two weeks!