Formula 1 Discussion - And favourite driver?

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Lewis and Leclerc failed a random plank wear check and may be disqualified:
Yeah, just saw a news item and was coming to post it:

Hamilton and Leclerc at risk of disqualification as cars fail post-race check​

Posted on 22nd October 2023, 23:41 | Written by Keith Collantine

Lewis Hamilton and Charles Leclerc could lose their results in today’s United States Grand Prix as both their cars have failed a post-race check.

The FIA Formula 1 technical delegate Jo Bauer confirmed their cars were found not to be in compliance with the technical regulations.

The Mercedes and Ferrari violated article 3.5.9 (e) which states the mandatory plank fitted to the underside of their cars must not wear below a minimum thickness of 9mm.

Bauer has referred the matter to the stewards for judgement. Hamilton finished the race in second place, Leclerc sixth. As violations of the technical regulations tend to result in disqualification, both drivers and teams stand to lose their finishing positions and championship points gained.

The Circuit of the Americas is one of the bumpiest tracks on the F1 calendar and has been patched and resurfaced in many places over the years. Nonetheless several F1 drivers observed its surface had worsened in places since last year. The extent of the bumps is likely to have contributed to the difficulty the two teams experienced in keeping their plank wear under control.

All cars are checked for compliance with the technical regulations following races, though different tests are sometimes carrier out on different cars. The document issued by the FIA made no mention of any other drivers’ cars failing the check, including those of Hamilton and Leclerc’s team mates. Carlos Sainz Jnr and George Russell finished fourth and seventh respectively.

The FIA tightened up the enforcement of its rules regarding plank wear during last season following the introduction of its new technical regulations.

IF they both get DQed which, unless they are found to be within the rules, they both should, then Sargent is going to get a point.
 
Hamilton and Leclerc have been disqualified.
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Hamilton:
[OFFICIAL] Decision - Car 44 (Lewis Hamilton) disqualified from the United States Grand Prix d...jpg [OFFICIAL] Decision - Car 44 (Lewis Hamilton) disqualified from the United States Grand Prix d...jpg
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Leclerc:
1698020997692.png [OFFICIAL] Decision - Car 44 (Lewis Hamilton) disqualified from the United States Grand Prix d...jpg
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Williams celebrating Sargeant's first point:
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Complete American victory! It’s Sargeant’s year now.

On a more serious note, this seriously hurts Lewlew’s chances to steal second from Checo.
 
Yeah man, hype up that 10th place that only happened due to retirements and DQs. Seat saved for 2024! LOL

Here is a news story on the DQs:

HAMILTON AND LECLERC DISQUALIFIED FROM US GP​

Oct 23, 2023 by Josh Suttill

Lewis Hamilton has been stripped of his second-place finish in Formula 1's United States Grand Prix after his Mercedes car was disqualified for a technical infringement, as was Charles Leclerc's Ferrari.

Hamilton and Leclerc were referred to the stewards after the race by FIA technical delegate Jo Bauer, who found the skids on the underside of their cars were not compliant with the technical regulations.

The stewards' decisions confirming penalties for both Hamilton and Leclerc said that both Mercedes and Ferrari had acknowledged those measurement findings were correct.

Both teams also 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 minimised the time to set up and check the car before the race".

The stewards added that the onus was on teams to ensure their cars are compliant "at all times during an event" and that disqualification - "the standard penalty for a breach of the technical regulations" - was required as both cars' planks were outside of the threshold set out in article 3.5.9 e) of the regulations, one that includes a tolerance for wear.

Hamilton's disqualification promotes Lando Norris to second in the race and hauls Carlos Sainz onto the podium in third.

Sergio Perez moves into fourth ahead of George Russell, who is lifted from seventh to fifth place.

Hamilton's exclusion also boosts Perez's hopes of sealing second in the 2023 F1 drivers' championship; rather than having his advantage reduced to 19 points, he is instead 39 points clear of the Mercedes driver with four rounds remaining.

The disqualifications double Pierre Gasly's points tally - he takes home eight points for sixth - ahead of Lance Stroll, whose seventh-place finish now marks his best finish since he was sixth in the Spanish GP in early June.

Yuki Tsunoda rises from 10th to eighth and walks away with five points after his fastest lap bonus point-winning effort on the final lap.

That doubles AlphaTauri's 2023 points tally and leaves it just two points shy of ninth-placed Haas in the constructors' championship.

There's also a first double-points finish for Williams since 2021, with Alex Albon ninth and Logan Sargeant 10th - marking his maiden F1 points finish.
 
Toto crowing to the journos about how this proved the car was vastly better didn't work out very well.
 
Funny how that didn't happen to Russell or Sainz. Maybe their setup wasn't as taxing then those of their teammates. But so funny, didn't Mercedes insist on rule changes last year and now falls prey to them? HA!
 
Yes the main thing was Toto accusing everyone else of trying to kill their drivers (with printouts), merc would never run an unsafe car or sacrifice the driver for performance of course.

Also, to be fair to Logie Sarge, he was only 6-ish seconds off Albon on track (before Albon got his penalty even). He's been an absolute trashfire this year but this was his best race by far and he should be happy with the point. Yes he's lucky with retirements to Piastri, Ocon and Alonso, and the DQs, but that's life.

ETA: apparently they only checked Max, Lewis, Charles and Lando for the plank wear issue, I guess they just do 4 spot checks. So it's possible Sainz and the Georpedo (and others) were just lucky.
 
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Can anyone with an Apple titanium phone confirm this stink thing the FIA mentions? Just rub the frame repeatedly on the floor. I'm not doubting it, I just find it amusing. I guess the low height helps explain Pewis' speed yesterday. My boys McLaren and Lando got another second place, just a shame Oscar was the victim des conneries.
 
Merc having the floor too low is particularly interesting because they were so excited about the new floor upgrade. That won't be any good if it only works running too close to the ground, which was basically the same design problem they've had since last year. I guess we'll see next races, Austin is bumpy af so it might be track specific.
 
Someone is worried at Merc about something... Kimi is skipping F3 and going straight into F2 from European Regional.
I'm never too up to date about the next generation, but who do they have lined up in terms of young drivers? I feel like they might be light. Maybe not for the merc team but there may be a seat at Williams soon enough.

Mick for me hasn't really shown enough to be worth another punt apart from having a name and being a respectable young man.
 
Mick talked to the TP of williams for Logan's seat in the asian round ( i think japan ) and even with Toto and the media hypejob , James volwes declined him even after seing the Simulator data so it might be over for Mick Surname in F1. Career ended. The Cause of Death : Kevin Magnussen :stress:

There is rumor that even the Alpine wec program is not to keen on giving him an another test session and giving him a seat for the following year .
 
Mick talked to the TP of williams for Logan's seat in the asian round ( i think japan ) and even with Toto and the media hypejob , James volwes declined him even after seing the Simulator data so it might be over for Mick Surname in F1. Career ended. The Cause of Death : Kevin Magnussen :stress:

There is rumor that even the Alpine wec program is not to keen on giving him an another test session and giving him a seat for the following year .
Logan earned a point in his first season, Mick didn't get any until his second.

Mick:
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Logan:
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I don't see why anyone besides nationalist Germans and old Michael Schumacher fans would ever expect Vowles to replace a Williams development driver on his first season with a Ferrari development driver who failed to do anything of note in two seasons. Logan isn't amazing, but neither is Mick, and if he had a different last name, no one would care about him. If Logan fails to perform next year, he will probably be fired, but his rookie season is objectively better than Mick's.
 
I don't see why anyone besides nationalist Germans and old Michael Schumacher fans would ever expect Vowles to replace a Williams development driver on his first season with a Ferrari development driver who failed to do anything of note in two seasons.
At this stage, Mick might be better off moving to one of the other categories that Krauts seem to enjoy, such as DTM.
 
Logan earned a point in his first season, Mick didn't get any until his second.
I don't see why anyone besides nationalist Germans and old Michael Schumacher fans would ever expect Vowles to replace a Williams development driver on his first season with a Ferrari development driver who failed to do anything of note in two seasons. Logan isn't amazing, but neither is Mick, and if he had a different last name, no one would care about him. If Logan fails to perform next year, he will probably be fired, but his rookie season is objectively better than Mick's.
I will say in the interest of fairness that the Haas in Mick's first season was an actual write-off, and much worse than the Williams is this year relatively. For me it's more about the second season, where he should've been settled in. As soon as he got put up against an actual (not even that great) driver, not Mazepin, he looked both slow and a crash merchant. If Logie has a second season like his first he'll be on Mick's level of shit and deserve the same treatment.

Also the Williams must be a bitch to start out in, it's all top speed but only if you run no wing at all like Albon does.
 
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