Ferrari issue official F1 Chinese Grand Prix statement over Lewis Hamilton and Charles Leclerc disqualification

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Ferrari issue official statement over Hamilton and Leclerc disqualification

Ferrari had both of their drivers disqualified

Sam Cook Digital Journalist

Sports Journalist who has been covering motorsport since 2023

Sunday 23 March 2025 16:55 Updated: 10:00

Ferrari have issued an official team statement, after Lewis Hamilton and Charles Leclerc were stripped of their points finishes in the aftermath of the Chinese Grand Prix.

The FIA confirmed after the race that both drivers had been disqualified, each for differing reasons. Leclerc's car was found to be underweight following post-race checks, while the skid block on Hamilton's car had suffered excessive wear.

It meant that the pair's fifth and sixth place results respectively were scratched from the record, promoting other drivers up the order, and ensuring Ferrari's dismal start to the season continued.

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"Following the FIA post-race scrutineering both our cars were found not to conform to the regulations for different reasons," an official Ferrari statement read.

"Car 16 was found to be underweight by 1kg and car 44's rearward skid was found to be 0.5mm below the limit.

"Charles was on a one-stop strategy today and this meant his tyre wear was very high, causing the car to be underweight. With regard to Lewis' skid wear, we misjudged the consumption by a small margin."

Hamilton's nightmare Ferrari start

Hamilton's Ferrari career has got off to a nightmare start in terms of main races. A 10th-place Australian GP finish has now been accentuated by a disqualification, meaning he has earned just one point from the two grands prix.

However, a stunning sprint race victory earlier in the weekend at the Chinese GP means that he is actually sat above Leclerc in the drivers' standings, and that victory has been the only moment to savour so far in Ferrari's season.

Hamilton has moved to Ferrari in the hope of once again challenging for an eighth world championship title, but that now looks a stretch in 2025, already sitting 35 points behind Lando Norris, who leads the way early on.

"There was no intention to gain any advantage, we will learn from what happened today and make sure we don't make the same mistakes again," the Ferrari statement continued.

"Clearly it's not the way we wanted to end our Chinese GP weekend, neither for ourselves nor for our fans whose support for us is unwavering."

Pierre Gasly was also disqualified from the race after an 11th-place finish, as his car was also deemed to be underweight following FIA inspections.

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Lewis Hamilton Ferrari FIA Charles Leclerc Chinese Grand Prix Australian GP