{"id":1748,"date":"2025-03-24T17:29:20","date_gmt":"2025-03-24T15:29:20","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.gauteng.net\/whats-on-g\/?p=1748"},"modified":"2026-03-12T10:44:10","modified_gmt":"2026-03-12T08:44:10","slug":"why-lewis-hamilton-and-ferrari-drivers-were-disqualified-at-chinese-gp","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.gauteng.net\/whats-on-g\/why-lewis-hamilton-and-ferrari-drivers-were-disqualified-at-chinese-gp\/","title":{"rendered":"Why Lewis Hamilton and Ferrari Drivers Were Disqualified at Chinese GP?"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<p>After the Chinese Grand Prix, Lewis Hamilton, Charles Leclerc, and Pierre Gasly were all disqualified due to technical infractions, each violating different aspects of the FIA\u2019s stringent regulations.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><strong>Leclerc and Gasly\u2019s Penalties<\/strong> <\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p>Leclerc, who had finished the race in 5th place, and Gasly, who came in 11th, both faced disqualification for breaching Article 4.1 of the Technical Regulations, which pertains to the minimum weight of the car. Following the race, it was revealed that Leclerc\u2019s car weighed exactly 800kg when weighed in the pits, but after draining fuel, it dropped to 799kg\u2014just under the minimum weight requirement. Gasly\u2019s car had a similar issue: it initially weighed 800kg, but after fuel removal, it dropped to 799kg. Both teams accepted responsibility for the breaches, and the stewards confirmed the disqualifications.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<div id=\"gaute-2499520232\" class=\"gaute-inbetween-content gaute-entity-placement\" style=\"margin-top: 30px;margin-bottom: 30px;margin-left: auto;margin-right: auto;text-align: center;\"><div class=\"gaute-adlabel\">Advertisement<\/div><script async src=\"\/\/pagead2.googlesyndication.com\/pagead\/js\/adsbygoogle.js?client=ca-pub-1852772760112594\" crossorigin=\"anonymous\"><\/script><ins class=\"adsbygoogle\" style=\"display:block;\" data-ad-client=\"ca-pub-1852772760112594\" \ndata-ad-slot=\"1819787043\" \ndata-ad-format=\"auto\" data-full-width-responsive=\"true\"><\/ins>\n<script> \n(adsbygoogle = window.adsbygoogle || []).push({}); \n<\/script>\n<\/div><h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><strong>Hamilton\u2019s Technical Breach<\/strong> <\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p>Hamilton\u2019s disqualification stemmed from a separate issue concerning his car\u2019s skid block. Upon a post-race inspection for wear, it was found that the plank assembly underneath his car was thinner than required. According to Article 3.5.9 of the Technical Regulations, the skid block must be at least 10mm thick, but Hamilton\u2019s car measured only 8.5mm in some areas, resulting in a breach.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><strong>Details of Disqualifications<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li><em>Leclerc\u2019s Breach<\/em>: After fuel was drained, Leclerc\u2019s car dropped below the 800kg minimum weight limit, falling to 799kg.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><em>Gasly\u2019s Breach<\/em>: Gasly\u2019s car also fell below the required weight limit after 1.1kg of fuel was drained, dropping to 799kg.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><em>Hamilton\u2019s Breach<\/em>: Hamilton\u2019s skid block was found to be under the required thickness of 10mm, with some areas measuring only 8.5mm.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<p>Also read: <a href=\"https:\/\/gauteng.news\/2025\/01\/21\/lewis-hamilton-inside-first-day-at-ferrari\/\" data-type=\"post\" data-id=\"45782\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Lewis Hamilton\u2019s Ferrari Dream: Inside His First Day with the Prancing Horse<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n<div id=\"gaute-1767463405\" class=\"gaute-inbetween-content gaute-entity-placement\" style=\"margin-top: 30px;margin-bottom: 30px;margin-left: auto;margin-right: auto;text-align: center;\"><div class=\"gaute-adlabel\">Advertisement<\/div><script async src=\"\/\/pagead2.googlesyndication.com\/pagead\/js\/adsbygoogle.js?client=ca-pub-1852772760112594\" crossorigin=\"anonymous\"><\/script><ins class=\"adsbygoogle\" style=\"display:block;\" data-ad-client=\"ca-pub-1852772760112594\" \ndata-ad-slot=\"1819787043\" \ndata-ad-format=\"auto\" data-full-width-responsive=\"true\"><\/ins>\n<script> \n(adsbygoogle = window.adsbygoogle || []).push({}); \n<\/script>\n<\/div><h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><strong>The Regulations Behind the Infractions<\/strong> <\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p>Leclerc and Gasly\u2019s disqualifications were due to violations of Article 4.1, which mandates that a Formula 1 car must weigh at least 800kg after fuel is drained. Hamilton\u2019s penalty, however, came from Article 3.5.9, which sets the minimum thickness for the skid block at 10mm, allowing for a slight tolerance of 9mm due to wear. Hamilton\u2019s car failed to meet this requirement after the wear of the block reduced its thickness.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><strong>Team Reactions and Reflections<\/strong> <\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p>Both Ferrari and Alpine accepted the disqualifications and released statements acknowledging the infractions. Alpine focused on looking ahead to the next race, while Ferrari explained that there was no intention to gain an advantage from the violations. Ferrari clarified that Leclerc\u2019s underweight issue occurred as a result of excessive tire wear during a one-stop strategy, while Hamilton\u2019s issue with the skid block stemmed from a misjudgement in the wear process. Both teams expressed their commitment to learning from these mistakes and preventing similar issues in the future.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<div id=\"gaute-96436017\" class=\"gaute-inbetween-content gaute-entity-placement\" style=\"margin-top: 30px;margin-bottom: 30px;margin-left: auto;margin-right: auto;text-align: center;\"><div class=\"gaute-adlabel\">Advertisement<\/div><script async src=\"\/\/pagead2.googlesyndication.com\/pagead\/js\/adsbygoogle.js?client=ca-pub-1852772760112594\" crossorigin=\"anonymous\"><\/script><ins class=\"adsbygoogle\" style=\"display:block;\" data-ad-client=\"ca-pub-1852772760112594\" \ndata-ad-slot=\"1819787043\" \ndata-ad-format=\"auto\" data-full-width-responsive=\"true\"><\/ins>\n<script> \n(adsbygoogle = window.adsbygoogle || []).push({}); \n<\/script>\n<\/div><h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><strong>Lessons Learned<\/strong> <\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p>The disqualifications of Hamilton, Leclerc, and Gasly underscore the importance of precision in <a href=\"https:\/\/www.formula1.com\/en\/latest\/article\/explained-why-hamilton-leclerc-and-gasly-were-all-disqualified-from-the.nsIhJiryzl2pV3OAzyWrm\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Formula 1<\/a>, where technical regulations are strictly enforced. While the drivers were not directly at fault, the errors made by their teams in adhering to the regulations cost them valuable race results. The penalties serve as a reminder of the high stakes in the sport, where even minor oversights can lead to significant consequences. Both Alpine and Ferrari have committed to improving their attention to detail in the future, aiming to avoid such breaches moving forward.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>After the Chinese Grand Prix, Lewis Hamilton, Charles Leclerc, and Pierre Gasly were all disqualified due to technical infractions, each violating different aspects of the FIA\u2019s stringent regulations. Leclerc and Gasly\u2019s Penalties Leclerc, who had finished the race in 5th place, and Gasly, who came in 11th, both faced disqualification for breaching Article 4.1 of<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":8,"featured_media":1749,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"rank_math_focus_keyword":"","rank_math_title":"","rank_math_description":"After the Chinese Grand Prix, Lewis Hamilton, Charles Leclerc, and Pierre Gasly were all disqualified due to technical infractions, each violating different...","footnotes":""},"categories":[64],"tags":[358,357],"class_list":{"0":"post-1748","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-sports-news","8":"tag-formula-1","9":"tag-formula-1-news"},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.gauteng.net\/whats-on-g\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1748","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.gauteng.net\/whats-on-g\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.gauteng.net\/whats-on-g\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.gauteng.net\/whats-on-g\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/8"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.gauteng.net\/whats-on-g\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=1748"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/www.gauteng.net\/whats-on-g\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1748\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":1750,"href":"https:\/\/www.gauteng.net\/whats-on-g\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1748\/revisions\/1750"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.gauteng.net\/whats-on-g\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/1749"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.gauteng.net\/whats-on-g\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=1748"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.gauteng.net\/whats-on-g\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=1748"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.gauteng.net\/whats-on-g\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=1748"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}