Featured Image Credit: Getty Images - Sky Sports
Topics: Formula 1, Lewis Hamilton, George Russell, Belgium
Jack Kenmare
Topics: Formula 1, Lewis Hamilton, George Russell, Belgium
A former F1 strategy engineer has pointed out what 'could have contributed' to George Russell's car being underweight after the Belgian Grand Prix.
An hour-and-a-half after securing an unlikely victory at the Circuit de Spa-Francorchamps, Lewis Hamilton was handed his second win of the 2024 campaign after race-winner Russell was disqualified.
Formula 1's governing body, the FIA, announced that his Mercedes car weighed in at 796.5 kilograms, which is 1.5kg under the minimum weight required by the sport's regulations.
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The car had initially weighed in at exactly 798 kilograms, which is the minimum weight required by TR Article 4.1, but once fuel was drained in accordance with the rules, it fell below the required figure.
"Heartbreaking. We came in 1.5kg underweight and have been disqualified from the race," Russell confirmed on X, formerly Twitter.
"We left it all on the track today and I take pride in crossing the line first. There will be more to come."
The stewards' ruling read: "Car 63 was weighed on the FIA inside and outside scales with both scales showing the same result of 796.5 kg. The calibration of both scales was confirmed and witnessed by the competitor.
"During the hearing the team representative confirmed that the measurement is correct and that all required procedures were performed correctly.
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"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 4.1 of the FIA Formula 1 Technical Regulations has been breached and therefore the standard penalty for such an infringement needs to be applied."
Shortly after the ruling emerged, Sky Sports commentator David Croft relayed the thoughts of Bernie Collins, a former F1 strategy engineer for the Aston Martin F1 team, regarding the much-talked-about situation.
Collins pointed out that the extra tread wear on the tyres due to the one stop, coupled with no ‘cool down’ lap to pick up rubber, could have contributed to Russell's car being underweight.
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Russell surprised the field when he one-stopped his way to victory ahead of Mercedes teammate Lewis Hamilton, who performed the conventional two-stops.
Russell’s one-stop strategy could have led to his disqualification, according to Sky Sports’ Craig Slater, who engaged in conversation with Mercedes after the race.
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“The reasons? I’ve had some guidance from within the Mercedes team about why they were underweight. It was to do Russell’s single-stop strategy," Slater said.
“The teams know exactly how much weight they will shed when tyres wear down.
“Russell would have been expected to make two stops today. It was his own idea, in conjunction with his pit wall, that later switched it to a single stop.
“It was the extra tyre wear that they’ve lost, perhaps several hundred grams per tyre, with the fact that they didn’t make a second stop and put on a fresh set, which has brought them in underweight.
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“Combined with, the team think, changing the car set-up pretty radically between Friday (when they abandoned some of the upgraded parts and reverted to earlier parts for qualifying and the race).”