A pair of notable post-Qatar stewards decisions have been announced by the FIA World Endurance Championship concerning teams in both the Hypercar and LMGT3 classes.
First, the No. 2 Cadillac V-Series.R of Alex Lynn, Earl Bamber and Sebastien Bourdais has been disqualified from the results of the March 1 race, after stewards determined that the car raced with non-compliant bodywork. A 3D scan in post-race scrutineering found that the rear diffuser strakes on both sides of the car were both higher and misaligned when measured against the homologated template.
In defense, Cadillac Racing team manager Stephen Mitas reported to the stewards that the bodywork was delivered without quality control having recognized the errant alignment. The stewards report recognized the infringement had no intent of non-compliance, but nevertheless order the car’s disqualification as it was outside the technical regulations.
“During the FIA World Endurance Championship race in Qatar on March 2, the rear diffuser strakes on the No. 2 Cadillac V-Series.R were unintentionally out of specification relative to the homologated height,” Cadillac conceded in a statement following the disqualification decision. “We have cooperated with the FIA and ACO and accept their findings.”
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The final result for the race therefore sees the No. 83 privately-funded AF Corse Ferrari 499P move up to fourth, with the No. 7 Toyota Gazoo Racing GR010 HYBRID inheriting a top-five finish. The No. 50 factory Ferrari 499P moves into sixth, with the No. 35 Alpine, No. 8 Toyota, Proton Porsche and the No. 20 BMW completing the top 10.
Elsewhere, the Vista AF Corse Ferrari LMGT3 team has been fined 60,000 Euros ($65,000) for improperly declared operational staff at the Qatar race.
Each team is capped on the number of operational staff that are permitted at race meetings, as part of a cost-saving measure. The investigation determined that three engineers allocated to the team had not been declared as operational staff. Instead, they were accredited by Ferrari as non-operational, marketing and communication team members. A stewards report revealed that the three staff were observed during the race meeting working on simulation and technical applications. When challenged by an FIA sporting delegate, they failed to confirm their operational status.
At Qatar, each LMGT3 team was allowed to field 16 team members per car, up from the standard number of 14, following a decision that permits teams to utilize two additional staff members for the first three races of the season. This dispensation was allowed to help the LMGT3 teams get up to speed in the first portion of the category’s inaugural season.
Ferrari’s defense was that the trio had not intervened during the race for either LMGT3 car. This was rejected by the stewards, who imposed the fine, half of which is payable immediately, with the balance suspended until the end of the season.
The final LMGT3 result from Qatar is unaffected by this decision.