George Russell's impressive victory at the Belgian Grand Prix was abruptly overturned when his Mercedes was found to be in breach of weight regulations. The British driver had orchestrated a masterful one-stop strategy to secure a dominant win over teammate Lewis Hamilton. However, the euphoria was short-lived as post-race scrutineering revealed Russell's car was 1.5 kilograms below the mandated minimum weight of 798 kilograms. Despite the car being drained of its remaining fuel, it still fell short of the required weight. The subsequent disqualification of Russell handed Hamilton his 105th Formula 1 victory, elevating Oscar Piastri to second place and Charles Leclerc to third. The unexpected turn of events sent shockwaves through the paddock, with Mercedes acknowledging a significant error and vowing to learn from the incident.
After Russell's Disqualification, Mercedes Team Principal Toto Wolff said: 'We have to take our disqualification on the chin. We have clearly made a mistake and need to ensure we learn from it. We will go away, evaluate what happened and understand what went wrong. To lose a 1-2 is frustrating and we can only apologise to George who drove such a strong race. Lewis is of course promoted to P1; he was the fastest guy on the two-stop and is a deserving winner.
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'Despite the disqualification, there are many positives we can take from this weekend. We had a car that was the benchmark in today's race across two different strategies. Only a few months ago, that would have been inconceivable. We head into the summer break having won three of the past four races. We will look to come back after the shutdown rejuvenated and with the aim of maintaining our positive trajectory.'
F1: FIA’s Post-race Inspections
The FIA’s post-race inspections at the Belgian Grand Prix revealed that George Russell's Mercedes was underweight, resulting in his disqualification and a stunning victory for teammate Lewis Hamilton. The governing body conducted rigorous checks, including multiple weight measurements both inside and outside the Mercedes garage, with the team agreeing on the accuracy of the equipment.
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Mercedes accepted the FIA's decision without protest. The disqualification marked a bitter end to what had been a dominant performance, denying the team their first one-two finish since 2022. Despite the disappointment, team principal Toto Wolff highlighted the significant progress made by Mercedes this season, emphasizing their improved competitiveness compared to the start of the year.
With 10 races remaining, Mercedes sits fourth in the constructors' championship, while Lewis Hamilton occupies sixth place in the drivers' standings. George Russell's disqualification dropped him to eighth.
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