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Lewis Hamilton awarded F1 win after George Russell disqualification in Belgian GP

Lewis Hamilton was awarded his second win of the F1 season Sunday after his Mercedes’ teammate George Russell was disqualified after his car failed post-race inspection after the Belgian Grand Prix.

Russell had originally won the race on a one-stop strategy, which had him managing his hard tires to the checkered flag and hold off Hamilton by just half a second.

However, a Technical Delegate’s Report released after the race stated that, while the car had initially been found to be compliant with the minimum weight of 798kg, 2.8 liters of fuel were then removed.

The report then reads: “The car was not fully drained according to the draining procedure submitted by the team in their legality documents as TR Article 6.5.2 is fulfilled.

“The car was weighed again on the FIA inside and outside scales and the weight was 796.5 kg. The calibration of the outside and inside scales was confirmed and witnessed by the competitor.

“As this is 1.5 kg below the minimum weight requested in TR Article 4.1, which also has to be respected at all times during the competition, I am referring this matter to the stewards for their consideration.”

After being referred to the stewards, they ruled that Russell had been disqualified from the race. That moved Hamilton to P1, while Oscar Piastri took P2 and Charles Leclerc P3.

A document released following the stewards’ hearing stated: “During the hearing the team representative confirmed that the measurement is correct and that all required procedures were performed correctly. 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.”

Speaking before the stewards’ verdict had been confirmed, Mercedes boss Toto Wolff seem to indicate that the team would accept the outcome, though acknowledged that it would be especially tough for Russell to take.

“We have to take it on the chin if the stewards decide against ourselves,” said Wolff. “It is what it is, the mistake has happened.”

The Team Principal went on to add: “We have to learn from that. As a team there are more positives to take, obviously for George it’s a massive blow.”

This is not the first disqualification an F1 team has faced for being below the weight cap. In 2005 British American Racing (BAR) had its results from the San Marino Grand Prix thrown out as both Jenson Button and Takuma Sato’s cars were found to be underweight when fully drained of fuel, as a secret secondary fuel tank was used as ballast. They were also banned from the next two races. A week later the team said they would not appeal.

In 1984 the team that would become BAR, Tyrrell also had its entire season results expunged as it was discovered that the team had topped up its water injection system throughout the races with a mixture of water and lead shot, which raised the underweight 012 above the 540-kilogram minimum weight limit.

Sunday’s ruling means that Lewis Hamilton inherits his 105th win in Formula 1, with McLaren’s Oscar Piastri moving up to second place. Charles Leclerc claims a 36th career podium finish with P3. With the rest of the field also moving up a place, RB’s Daniel Ricciardo claims his third points finish of the season with 10th place.

2024 F1 Belgian Grand Prix – Race Results
Pos Driver Nat. Team Time
1 Lewis Hamilton GBR Mercedes AMG Petronas F1 Team 44 Laps
2 Oscar Piastri AUS McLaren F1 Team + 0.647s
3 Charles Leclerc MON Scuderia Ferrari + 8.023s
4 Max Verstappen NED Oracle Red Bull Racing + 8.700s
5 Lando Norris GBR McLaren F1 Team + 9.324s
6 Carlos Sainz ESP Scuderia Ferrari + 19.269s
7 Sergio Perez MEX Oracle Red Bull Racing + 42.669s
8 Fernando Alonso ESP Aston Martin Aramco F1 Team + 49.437s
9 Esteban Ocon FRA BWT Alpine F1 Team + 52.026s
10 Daniel Ricciardo AUS Visa Cash App RB F1 Team + 54.400s
11 Lance Stroll CAN Aston Martin Aramco F1 Team + 62.485s
12 Alex Albon THA Williams Racing + 63.125s
13 Pierre Gasly FRA BWT Alpine F1 Team + 63.839s
14 Kevin Magnussen DEN MoneyGram Haas F1 Team + 66.105s
15 Valtteri Bottas FIN Stake F1 Team Kick Sauber + 70.112s
16 Yuki Tsunoda JPN Visa Cash App RB F1 Team + 76.211s
17 Logan Sargeant USA Williams Racing + 85.531s
18 Nico Hulkenberg GER MoneyGram Haas F1 Team + 88.307s
Zhou Guanyu CHN Stake F1 Team Kick Sauber DNF
George Russell GBR Mercedes AMG Petronas F1 Team DSQ
Greg Engle
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