Hamilton disqualified from Chinese GP after skid block breach as Ferrari suffer double disqualification
Lewis Hamilton’s victory in the Sprint on Saturday was followed by a challenging day at the Shanghai International Circuit on Sunday, as the seven-time World Champion struggled to keep pace with his rivals and ultimately finished in sixth place. However, his day took a turn for the worse after the race, as a Technical Delegate’s report revealed that his car’s rearmost skid was below the minimum 9mm thickness required.
As a result, Hamilton and a team representative were summoned to the stewards, and after a hearing, it was announced that the Briton had been disqualified from the results of Sunday’s race. The stewards’ decision was based on Article 3.5.9 of the FIA Formula 1 Technical Regulations, which states that the plank assembly of a car must be at least 9mm thick.
The report from the Technical Delegate revealed that Hamilton’s car had been measured and found to be below the minimum thickness, with readings of 8.6mm on the left-hand side, 8.6mm at the car’s centerline, and 8.5mm on the right-hand side. The team representative confirmed that the measurement was correct and acknowledged that there were no mitigating circumstances, describing it as a genuine error by the team.
The disqualification marked a nightmare end to the day for Ferrari, as Charles Leclerc had also received a post-race disqualification from fifth place after his car was found to be below the minimum weight required by the technical regulations. Like Hamilton, Leclerc and a team representative were summoned to the stewards, and it was later announced that the Monegasque had been disqualified.
Alpine’s Pierre Gasly was also hit with a disqualification for the same breach as Leclerc, leaving the Enstone outfit as the only team yet to score a point so far in 2025. The double disqualification for Ferrari meant that several drivers were promoted by two positions, including Esteban Ocon, Kimi Antonelli, Alex Albon, and Ollie Bearman, who had finished in seventh through to 10th respectively.
Lance Stroll and Carlos Sainz also took home points by moving into the top 10, given that Gasly had been disqualified from 11th place. The disqualifications marked a dramatic end to the day’s racing, and it will be interesting to see how the teams and drivers respond to the decisions in the coming days.
