Autobayng News Team
Williams have suffered a double blow after both their drivers were disqualified from today’s qualifying session for the Singapore Grand Prix.
The rear wings on Carlos Sainz Jnr and Alexander Albon’s cars failed the same inspection after qualifying.
FIA Formula 1 technical delegate Jo Bauer stated “the uppermost rear wing element adjustable positions were checked on car numbers 23 and 55” and “both cars exceeded the maximum limit of 85 mm on both sides of the rear wing outer area.”
Albon originally qualified 12th for the race, one place ahead of Sainz. However as the cars have been found not to comply with the technical regulations, both have been disqualified.
“During post-qualifying scrutineering, the rear wing of the car was found to be non-compliant with the technical regulations,” the stewards noted. “The uppermost rear wing element adjustable positions were checked. The DRS in the state of deployment exceeded the maximum limit of 85mm on both sides of the rear wing outer area.
“At the hearing, the competitor admitted that, although their own measurement prior to the qualifying had shown the component to be within tolerance, the measurement subsequently conducted by the appointed FIA officials revealed a larger gap than permitted and therefore the rear wing did not conform with the required dimension.
“The competitor did not contest the measurement procedure, the methodology, or the accuracy of the measuring equipment used by FIA. The Competitor fully accepted the results of the FIA measurement and acknowledged that the rear wing fitted to the car did not comply with the requirements of the technical regulations.
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“Accordingly, the standard penalty applicable to technical infringements is imposed.”
The stewards have granted Williams permission to take part in the race. However if their rear wings have to be changed for parts of different specifications their drivers will have to start from the pits.
Team principal James Vowles said the team has immediately begun to look into how they ended up in violation of the rules.
“This is bitterly disappointing for the team and we are urgently investigating how this happened,” he said. “At no point were we seeking a performance advantage and the rear wings had passed our own checks earlier in the day, but there is only one measurement that matters and we fully accept the FIA ruling.
“We have a car capable of scoring points here this weekend and will do everything we can to fight from the back of the grid tomorrow, and will immediately review our processes to make sure this doesn’t happen again.”
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