Scandal in Las Vegas: McLaren Disqualified and the Championship at Stake
An unexpected turn shook the Las Vegas Grand Prix. Barely three hours after crossing the finish line, both Lando Norris’s car and that of his McLaren teammate, Oscar Piastri, were disqualified. The reason: excessive wear on the plank, a piece located on the underside of the Formula 1 car. The wear exceeded the permitted limits, forcing the stewards to make the drastic decision to exclude both drivers from the final classification. In Norris’s car, the wear exceeded the limit by 0.12 millimeters, while in Piastri’s it was 0.26 mm. To put it in perspective, the thickness of an average human hair ranges from 0.17 to 0.181 mm. This means that Norris could lose the championship by a minimal difference. The confirmation of the disqualifications, issued by the stewards at 1:42 a.m. Pacific time on Sunday, reduced the 30-point lead that Norris thought he had over Piastri and the 42-point lead over Verstappen, to just 24 points before the Qatar Grand Prix.Why the disqualification?
The FIA’s statements made it clear that, although the stewards considered the infringement to be unintentional, the technical regulations do not allow for margin of error in the measurement of the plank wear. The plank material is designed to wear down during the race, protecting the underside of the car and allowing the FIA to ensure a minimum ride height. Running the car very low can improve aerodynamics, but also increase the risk of downforce loss. FIA checks monitor the wear of the plank on all scoring cars. Four holes are measured in the plank, which must have a depth of 10 mm (plus or minus 0.2 mm) at the start of the race and no less than 9 mm at the end. On Norris’s car, two of the four holes measured less than 9 mm, and on Piastri’s, three of the four. In this year’s Chinese Grand Prix, Lewis Hamilton was disqualified for the same infringement, with a wear of the plank that exceeded the limit by 0.5 mm.Why did McLaren race the car so low?
Current F1 cars are extremely sensitive to ride height. Every millimeter the car gets closer to the ground improves airflow and generates the “ground effect”, which increases downforce.Every weekend, teams seek the perfect ride height to balance aerodynamic performance and plank wear. Although simulations provide a starting point, teams rely on track testing to make the final decision before qualifying.
Andrea Stella, McLaren team principal, added:“The team argued that there were mitigating circumstances, such as unexpected porpoising, limited testing time due to weather, and shorter practice sessions.”
Stewards’ Statement
McLaren was aware of the problem during the race, and they instructed Norris to lift off the accelerator and coast at the end of the straights. Despite running more than 3.5 seconds off the pace at certain times, Norris’ efforts were not enough. “We had to manage a few things towards the end of the race and we now know that was due to some issues on our car, which unfortunately resulted in our disqualification,” Norris said in a McLaren statement. “It’s frustrating to lose so many points. As a team, we are always pushing to find as much performance as possible, and it’s clear that we didn’t achieve that balance today.”“During the race, both cars experienced unexpected levels of porpoising, not seen in the practice sessions, which led to excessive ground contact. We are investigating the reasons for this behavior, including the effect of accidental damage suffered by both cars, which we found after the race, and which led to an increase in ground movement. As noted by the FIA, the infringement was unintentional, there was no deliberate attempt to circumvent the regulations, and mitigating circumstances also existed”.
Andrea Stella, McLaren team principal
McLaren Apologizes to Its Drivers
Although Norris arrives at the last two races with less of an advantage than he expected, he is still the favorite for the title. He has a 24-point lead over his two closest rivals, and if he can increase it to 26 or more at the end of the Qatar Grand Prix, he will secure the championship.Meanwhile, Piastri, who has had performance issues in recent races, saw his disadvantage with his teammate reduced as a result of the disqualification. It may not be enough to overcome his loss of form, but it gives him more opportunities than he would have had if both McLarens had been declared legal.
Verstappen is undoubtedly the biggest winner, as it seemed he would be eliminated from the title fight in Qatar if the initial result of the McLarens had held. Now, finishing ahead of Norris and Piastri in the sprint race and the Grand Prix next weekend will ensure that he remains in contention until the final round in Abu Dhabi.
