Lewis Hamilton and Charles Leclerc disqualified in nightmare race for Ferrari

Lewis Hamilton has been disqualified from sixth place in the Chinese Grand Prix after his Ferrari was adjudged to have broken the rules.

Hamilton, who had scored eight points, was summoned to see the stewards in Shanghai after the rearmost skid on his Ferrari came in between 8.5 and 8.6 millimetres, which is less than the 9mm minimum thickness required.

Three hours after the race Hamilton was thrown out of the result, with Ferrari team-mate Charles Leclerc also disqualified from fifth place after his car was underweight. Alpine’s Pierre Gasly has also been expelled for the same breach.

The stewards said in a statement: “The plank assembly of Car 44 (Hamilton) 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.”

Published: 23/03/2025 by Radio NewsHub