It is possible that a high-performing Formula One team will be disqualified from the sprint race at the Chinese Grand Prix because they did not adhere to one of the strict rules.
On Friday morning, all twenty Formula One drivers competed in a qualifying session for the first sprint race of the season, which was held at the Shanghai Audi International Circuit in China.
Lewis Hamilton, a seven-time world champion, stunned the crowd by completing the fastest lap and claiming pole position for the sprint race. He finished ahead of his long-term rival Max Verstappen and Oscar Piastri, who was driving for McLaren.
The governing body of the sport has confirmed that a stringent rule was disregarded during the session, which could result in the disqualification of one team from the sprint race. This could be a disastrous outcome for the competing team.
All eyes were on Williams as they prepared to compete in the second race of the season this week. This was due to the fact that Alex Albon had just finished fifth in the Australian Grand Prix, which could have been a career-best performance for him.
Although Albon qualified for the sprint race in ninth place, Carlos Sainz, another member of the British team, finished the session in thirteenth place. This means that the British team did not quite reach the heights that they had achieved a week ago.
It is possible that things are about to get even worse for Williams, as the technical delegate of the FIA, Jo Bauer, issued a statement 90 minutes after the conclusion of the sprint qualifying session. In the statement, she confirmed that Williams would be referred to the stewards as a result of an alleged violation of the Technical Regulations.
The issue of flexible rear wings on Formula One cars has been the subject of multiple discussions since the conclusion of the Australian Grand Prix. As a result, a new rule has been implemented, which stipulates that teams are required to provide the FIA with camera footage of the rear wing within one hour of the conclusion of free practice.
It is also alleged that Williams violated this rule because they did not provide the footage in a timely manner. As a result, they may be subject to a severe punishment in advance of the sprint race that will take place tomorrow.
“The Atlassian Williams Racing team failed to provide the video files recorded by the wireless forward and rearward facing cameras within one hour after the end of the first free practice session, as described in the procedure “Additional Diagnostic” of the Technical Directive TD034L,” read the most recent report from International Federation of Automobile Associations Technical Delegate Jo Baue.
According to the 2025 Formula One Technical Regulations, the video files that are recorded by these cameras are utilised for the purpose of monitoring compliance with the first paragraph of Article 3.2.2, as well as complying with the requirements outlined in Article 3.15.16.
Due to the fact that this does not comply with Article 1.6 of the 2025 Formula One Technical Regulations, I am referring this matter to the stewards so that they can take it into consideration.
It is expected that a final decision regarding Williams’ error will be made before the sprint race begins in the early hours of Saturday morning. A representative of the team will be instructed to report to the stewards at 8:30 local time.
The possibility of being disqualified exists in the event that it is determined that there has been a violation of the technical rules.
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