Following the F1 Las Vegas GP on Saturday night, both Championship leader Lando Norris and his McLaren teammate Oscar Piastri were disqualified from the final classification.
McLaren were summoned to the stewards following the race, won by Max Verstappen, due to a suspected technical infringement. Norris had initially secured second place, further extending his championship advantage over Piastri, who finished fourth. Before the disqualification ruling, Norris held a 42-point lead over Verstappen in the standings.
Norris “lifting and coasting” in the final laps
Early suspicion focused on Norris’ dramatic late-race pace drop, with the Briton instructed to “lift and coast” as the final laps unfolded, suggesting a potential fuel issue. Norris had been around 10 seconds behind race leader Verstappen, but his pace faded rapidly. By the time the chequered flag fell on Lap 50, George Russell, who had been 10 seconds behind Norris earlier, had closed the gap to just 2.805 seconds.
However, post-race scrutineering revealed the real issue: excessive plank (skid block) wear on both McLaren cars. The infringement mirrors the same technical breach that saw Lewis Hamilton and Charles Leclerc disqualified from the 2023 United States Grand Prix.
The FIA Technical Delegate stated:
“The skid wear of car numbers 81 and 04 was checked.”
“The rearmost skid was measured on both cars according to the team’s legality documents submission in accordance with TD039M, item 1.2 b) i). The measured thickness was less than 9mm on both cars, which is the minimum thickness required by Technical Regulations Article 3.5.9(e).”
“I am referring this matter to the stewards for their consideration.”
McLaren disqualified
After reviewing the data and technical evidence, the stewards confirmed both McLaren’s were in breach of the regulations, resulting in their disqualification from the final classification of the F1 Las Vegas GP.
The stewards announced:
“The rear skids of Car 4 [and 81] were measured and found to be below the minimum thickness of 9mm specified under Article 3.5.9 of the Technical Regulations. The relevant measurements were RHS Front 8.88mm [Piastri 8.96], RHS Rear 8.93mm [Piastri 8.74]. The measuring device was a Mitutoyo Micrometre purchased in May 2025, and according to the manufacturer’s specifications, accurate to within 0.001mm.”
“The rear skids were re-measured in the presence of the Stewards and the three McLaren representatives, and those measurements confirmed that the skids did not comply with the regulations. The relevant measurements were even lower than those measured originally by the Technical Delegate.”
“Accordingly the Stewards determine that a breach of the Technical Regulations have occurred. The Stewards then heard submissions on penalty.”
McLaren argued the circumstances
McLaren argued that the weekend’s unusual circumstances, including limited running on Day 1 and shortened practice sessions, affected their performance. The FIA, however, maintained that the regulations left no room for exceptions and insisted that the standard penalty of disqualification applied.
“The Team argued that mitigating circumstances existed in that there was additional and unexpected porpoising at this event, limited opportunity to test due to the weather on Day 1, and shortened practice sessions. Further the Team submitted that the degree of the breach was lower than prior breaches of this regulation in 2025.”
“The FIA argued that unfortunately there was no provision in the regulations or in precedent for any penalty other than the usual penalty (i.e. disqualification). The FIA noted that it strongly held the view that the breach was unintentional and that there was not deliberate attempt to circumvent the regulations.”
“The Stewards also note the various decisions of the FIA International Court of Appeal which limit the ability to avoid disqualification for technical breaches. Notwithstanding the submission by the Team that there was potentially accidental damage that may have led to movement of the floor which could have caused additional wear, the Stewards do not consider this sufficient to mitigate the penalty.”
“The Stewards determine that Article 3.5.9 of the FIA Formula One Technical Regulations has been breached and therefore the standard penalty of a disqualification needs to be applied for such an infringement.”
