Ferrari driver Lewis Hamilton has been disqualified from the Chinese Grand Prix after his car, the SF-25, failed to meet the FIA’s minimum plank thickness requirements.

The seven-time world champion, who finished sixth in the race at the Shanghai International Circuit, will be stripped of his finishing position. Newsweek Sports reported that he and his teammate Charles Leclerc were under investigation. However, the disqualification has been confirmed by the FIA.

Hamilton started the Chinese GP race weekend on a high note by securing pole position during the sprint qualifying on Friday, followed by his first sprint victory with Ferrari on Saturday. While Sunday’s main race saw him struggle to advance his position, the disqualification comes as a big setback, preventing him from taking home any points.

The FIA stewards stated that Hamilton’s #44 car was observed with excessive plank assembly wear, failing to meet the minimum thickness of 9mm. The official document from the stewards stated:

“The Stewards heard from the team representative of Car 44 (Lewis Hamilton). The plank assembly of Car 44 was measured and found to be 8.6mm (LHS), 8.6mm (car centerline) and 8.5mm (RHS). This is below the minimum thickness of 9mm specified under Article 3.5.9 of the Technical Regulations.

“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 3.5.9 of the FIA Formula 1 Technical Regulations has been breached and therefore the standard penalty of a disqualification needs to be applied for such an infringement.

“Competitors are reminded that they have the right to appeal certain decisions of the Stewards, in accordance with Article 15 of the FIA International Sporting Code and Chapter 4 of the FIA Judicial and Disciplinary Rules, within the applicable time limits.

“Decisions of the Stewards are taken independently of the FIA and are based solely on the relevant regulations, guidelines and evidence presented.”

Hamilton, who was unaware after the race that he would be disqualified in a few hours, commented on his performance at the Chinese GP. He said:

“I feel okay. I wasn’t able to get the result that I was hoping for today. I needed a good start – which I got – [and] I was trying to see if I could pounce forwards but I just didn’t have the pace of the cars up ahead.

“And just balance-wise, from the Sprint race we made these changes and the car was terrible after that, so I really struggled with the car from then on.”

He added:

“I think there’s definitely positives to take from the weekend.

“Obviously we’re losing ground to the McLarens points-wise, McLaren and Mercedes and [Max] Verstappen, but we’ve just got to keep pushing.”

The drivers who finished behind Hamilton will move up one position in the race as a result of his disqualification, meaning Carlos Sainz has scored his first points with Williams.