Hamilton and Leclerc disqualified from United States GP

Published on 23 October 2023 by Niels Hendrix

Lewis Hamilton (Mercedes) and Charles Leclerc (Ferrari) have both been disqualified from the United States Grand Prix. Hamilton had finished second at Circuit of the Americas and Leclerc crossed the line in sixth.

Following the race in Austin, their cars were inspected and irregularities were spotted by the FIA after a plank wear inspection was carried out. Their skid pads showed too much wear.

Mercedes and Ferrari stated that “the high wear on the skid pads was probably a result of the unique combination of the bumpy track and the sprint race schedule that minimized the time to set up and check the car before the race.”

However, the stewards noted that “the onus is on the competitor to ensure that the car is in compliance with the regulations at all times during an event. In this particular case, the rear skid in the area defined in the technical delegate’s report was outside of the thresholds outlined in article 3.5.9 e) of the FIA Formula One technical regulations, which includes a tolerance for wear.”

The disqualification moves Norris up to second and promotes Carlos Sainz to a podium place. Sergio Perez moves to fourth and extends his lead over Hamilton in the fight for second in the drivers’ championship.

Russell jumps from seventh to fifth, Pierre Gasly to sixth and Lance Stroll to seventh. Yuki Tsunoda was eighth. It also means that Williams score with both cars, Alex Albon inheriting ninth place and Logan Sargeant grabbing his first F1 point with P10 on home soil.