Both Haas F1 cars have been excluded from qualifying at the Monaco Grand Prix after failing a technical check relating to their DRS.
Nico Hulkenberg qualified in 12th place and Kevin Magnussen 15th as both drivers advanced to Q2, but were then found to not be in conformity with the technical regulations after the end of the session.
FIA technical delegate Jo Bauer’s findings read:
“The uppermost rear wing element adjustable positions were checked on car numbers 20 and 27. The left-hand side and right-hand side outermost area of the of the adjustable elements were exceeding the maximum allowed 85mm on both cars. As this is not in compliance with TR Article 3.10.10 h), I am referring this matter to the stewards for their consideration.”
[lawrence-auto-related count=3 category=1388]
After an investigation from the stewards, Haas admitted it had made an operational error with new parts brought to this race, configuring them in the same way they had the previous rear wing at earlier races.
“The team explained that this was the consequence of an inadvertent error on their part in setting the wing flap gap. The wing used was a new design that was used for the first time in Monaco. The old design was set to be compliant with the regulations with the largest gap measured from the center of the wing. Under the new design, the largest gap was at the extremities of the wing but the team had not trained its mechanics to set the gap per the new design, resulting in the non-compliance.
“The duty to comply strictly with the Technical Regulations rests at all times with the Competitor. The team suggested that there was no performance advantage gained by the non-compliance. Article 1.3.3 of the International Sporting Code makes it clear that this is irrelevant.
“The team was candid in admitting its error. The wing was otherwise compliant with the Technical Regulations and the FIA technical team confirmed that they were satisfied with the team’s explanation for the error.”
As the exclusion leads to both cars not having valid lap times in qualifying, they have been permitted to start the race at the back of the grid by the stewards due to satisfactory performance shown during practice sessions this weekend.