Lewis Hamilton, Charles Leclerc and Pierre Gasly have all been disqualified from the Chinese Grand Prix.
Hamilton was found to have a skid block breach, while Leclerc and Apline star Gasly were found to be underweight.
Leclerc had finished fifth ahead of Ferrari teammate Hamilton in sixth, earning ten and eight points respectively.
However, the Italian squad now lose those combined 18 points due to the infringements.
A statement explaining Hamilton’s punishment said: “A document released following the hearing reads: “The plank assembly of Car 44 was measured and found to be 8.6mm (LHS), 8.6mm (car centerline) and 8.5mm (RHS). This is below the minimum thickness of 9mm specified under Article 3.5.9 of the Technical Regulations.
“During the hearing the team representative confirmed that the measurement is correct and that all required procedures were performed correctly. The team also acknowledged that there were no mitigating circumstances and that it was a genuine error by the team.
“The Stewards determine that Article 3.5.9 of the FIA Formula 1 Technical Regulations has been breached and therefore the standard penalty of a disqualification needs to be applied for such an infringement.”
Gasly, meanwhile, didn’t lose any points as he was out of scoring positions in 11th, but he could have jumped up to ninth had he not been disqualified and the Ferraris were.
The disqualifications mean that Haas’ Esteban Ocon records an impressive fifth, while teammate and young British rookie Oliver Bearman claims four points in eighth.
More to follow...
