George Russell has been disqualified for having an underweight car after winning the Belgian Grand Prix, handing victory to his Mercedes team-mate Lewis Hamilton.
Russell stunned the rest of the field by pulling off an audacious one-stop strategy to seal a surprise Mercedes one-two at Spa, but about 90 minutes after the conclusion of the race, the FIA announced that his car had come in underweight.
The W15 weighed in at 796.5 kilograms, 1.5kg beneath the minimum weight required by the sport’s regulations. The car had initially weighed in bang on the 798kg limit, but once the remaining fuel was drained in accordance with the rules, it fell below.
The FIA’s Formula 1 technical delegate Jo Bauer referred the matter to the stewards, who then confirmed Russell’s disqualification.
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Sky Sports’ Karun Chandhok explains how George Russell’s one-stop strategy enabled him to finish first.
The decision gives Hamilton a second victory in three races going into F1’s summer break, with the seven-time world champion having won the British Grand Prix earlier in July to end a 56-race winless streak.
McLaren’s Oscar Piastri was promoted to second, while Ferrari’s Charles Leclerc moved up to third to take the final podium place.
World championship leader Max Verstappen and his nearest challenger Lando Norris were promoted to fourth and fifth, respectively.
More to follow…
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