George Russell has been disqualified from the Belgian Grand Prix due to his Mercedes W15 being under the required minimum weight of 798 kg, resulting in his team-mate Lewis Hamilton being declared the winner.
“Heartbreaking,” Russell shared on his X account. “We left it all on the track today and I take pride in crossing the line first. There will be more to come.”
Consequently, Lewis Hamilton is awarded his 105th Formula 1 victory, with McLaren’s Oscar Piastri promoted to second place, and Charles Leclerc achieving his 36th career podium finish in third place. The reclassification also means that RB’s Daniel Ricciardo secures his third points finish of the season in 10th place.
Russell initially secured a remarkable victory at Spa using a well-executed one-stop strategy. However, following the race, the FIA Technical Delegate reported that while Russell’s car initially met the minimum weight requirement of 798.0 kg, subsequent measurements revealed an issue. After 2.8 litres of fuel were drained from the car to obtain the necessary sample, the vehicle was weighed again and registered at 796.5 kg, which is 1.5 kg below the stipulated minimum weight as specified in Technical Regulation Article 4.1.
Hamilton appeared to be in a strong position to secure victory for the majority of the race. He initially contested with Red Bull’s Sergio Perez, moving into second place, and ultimately overtook Leclerc to take the lead. Meanwhile, Russell, who started in sixth place, strategically advanced to the front with a one-stop strategy, while the other competitors opted for a two-stop strategy, resulting in a shift in their positions.
Russell made his first pit stop on Lap 10, followed by Hamilton two laps later. However, when Hamilton returned for a second pit stop on Lap 27, Mercedes decided to allow his teammate to remain on track until the conclusion of the race.
The matter was subsequently referred to the Race Stewards. During their review, a Mercedes team representative admitted that there were no extenuating circumstances and acknowledged that the situation was due to an honest mistake on the part of the team. As a result, the Stewards concluded that a breach of Article 4.1 of the FIA Formula 1 Technical Regulations had occurred, leading to Russell’s disqualification from the race results.
Photo/GeorgeRussell/X
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