Ferrari Formula 1 drivers Charles Leclerc and Lewis Hamilton have both been thrown out of the final Chinese Grand Prix classification for their cars breaching different technical rules.
Here's what doomed both drivers to an embarrassing double disqualification for the team.
Why Leclerc's been disqualified
Leclerc was referred to the stewards when the FIA's F1 technical delegate Jo Bauer found his Ferrari to be 1kg under the 798kg weight limit (accounting for a required two-litre fuel sample).
This was nothing to do with Leclerc's front wing damage that Ferrari did not replace during the race as teams are required to repair damage before being weighed - and the spare front wing it fitted was actually 0.2kg heavier than the original anyway.
The stewards elected to disqualify Leclerc for breaching the weight limit rule as is the standard punishment for such an offence.
"Car #16 was weighed by the FIA technical delegate inside and outside scales with both scales showing the same result of 799kg after the customary draining of fuel and the replacement of a broken front wing," the stewards statement read.
"The calibration of both scales was confirmed and witnessed by the competitor. During the hearing there was no challenge to the FIA's measurements which are taken to be correct and that all required procedures were performed correctly.
"There are no mitigating circumstances and the team confirmed that it was a genuine error by them."
Pierre Gasly's Alpine was also disqualified from 11th for the same offence.
Leclerc lost his fifth-place finish and Hamilton did not benefit because he was disqualified for a different technical infringement.
Why Hamilton's been disqualified
Hamilton was referred to the stewards for excessive skid wear (part of the plank assembly underneath the car) and the stewards elected to disqualify him shortly after Leclerc.
"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," a statement from the stewards read.
"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."
Ironically Hamilton and Leclerc both fell foul of the same offence at the 2023 United States Grand Prix, disqualifying Hamilton from second and Leclerc from sixth that day.
Ferrari's response
Shortly after the double disqualification Ferrari released the following statement to explain the errors.
"Following the FIA post-race scrutineering both our cars were found not to conform to the regulations for different reasons. Car 16 was found to be underweight by 1kg and [Hamilton's car]'s rearward skid wear 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.
"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.
"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."
The impact
The double disqualification cost Ferrari 18 points, adding to a tricky start to the 2025 season, with Lewis Hamilton's sprint victory on Saturday in China the only real highlight so far.
Ferrari is now already 61 points behind championship leader McLaren in the constructors' standings, with both Hamilton and Leclerc also well adrift of leader Norris in the drivers' championship.
Their disqualifications and Gasly's means new Haas driver Esteban Ocon is the biggest winner as he moves from seventh to fifth place.
Mercedes rookie Kimi Antonelli is promoted into sixth place ahead of Alex Albon and Ollie Bearman, while Lance Stroll is elevated into the ninth and Carlos Sainz gets his first point for Williams despite taking the chequered flag in 13th place.
