Autobayng News Team
The stewards have fined McLaren €30,000 (£25,900), one-third of which is suspended, after discovering the team rendered its Clutch Disengagement System useless.
The breach came to light after an electrical problem forced Lando Norris to stop his car during the second practice session. He parked in the run-off area at the Nouvelle Chicane.
The marshals had difficulty moving his car as they were unable to use the cockpit-mounted CDS button to put his car into neutral and allow it to be pushed away easily. Instead the marshals had to move the car by physically lifting the nose in order to put a wheeled platform underneath it.
The stewards revealed the marshals’ difficulty using the CDS button arose because McLaren had covered it up. “The team admitted that for aerodynamic purposes it had placed transparent tape over the button that is required to be pressed to activate the CDS,” the stewards noted.
“This, in the opinion of the FIA representatives and admitted by the team, completely defeated the purpose of the CDS, which is designed to be activated quickly by a marshal wearing protective gloves. The team conceded that it was not possible to break the tape and press the button by hand without the use of a tool.”
McLaren’s infringement comes two weeks after Racing Bulls were fined the same amount, but with two-thirds suspended, after the CDS button on Liam Lawson’s failed. The stewards said they gave McLaren a harsher penalty because “that breach, and the subsequent penalty, should have alerted all teams to the importance of the CDS.”
While McLaren must pay €20,000 of their fine immediately, the remaining €10,000 will only become payable if they commit a similar breach within the next 12 months.
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Published by
Keith Collantine
Lifelong motor sport fan Keith set up RaceFans in 2005 – when it was originally called F1 Fanatic. Having previously worked as a motoring journalist, Keith began running the site full-time in 2010, achieving a long-held ambition to dedicate his full attention to his passion for motor racing. View all posts by Keith Collantine
