Williams excluded from Singapore qualifying for DRS infringement

Both Williams drivers have been excluded from the results of qualifying at the Singapore Grand Prix due to a DRS infringement.

Alex Albon and Carlos Sainz originally qualified 12th and 13th respectively on Saturday night, but during post-qualifying scrutineering both cars were found to have “exceeded the maximum limit of 85 mm on both sides of the rear wing outer area” of the uppermost element. The matter was referred to the stewards, and Williams could offer no acceptable explanation for the breach.

“At the hearing, the competitor admitted that, although their own measurement prior to the qualifying had shown the component to be within tolerance, the measurement subsequently conducted by the appointed FIA Officials revealed a larger gap than permitted and therefore the rear wing did not conform with the required dimension,” the stewards’ decision read.

“The competitor did not contest the measurement procedure, the methodology, or the accuracy of the measuring equipment used by FIA. The competitor fully accepted the results of the FIA measurement and acknowledged that the rear wing fitted to the car did not comply with the requirements of the Technical Regulations.”

James Vowles, Williams team principal, says the team is already trying to understand how it found the wing to be legal prior to qualifying but accepts it was outside the regulations on the FIA tests.

“This is bitterly disappointing for the team and we are urgently investigating how this happened,” Vowels said. “At no point were we seeking a performance advantage and the rear wings had passed our own checks earlier in the day, but there is only one measurement that matters and we fully accept the FIA ruling.

“We have a car capable of scoring points here this weekend and will do everything we can to fight from the back of the grid tomorrow, and will immediately review our processes to make sure this doesn’t happen again.”

With both drivers excluded from the results, the stewards then gave them position to start the race from the back of the grid due to the satisfactory lap times they had set in practice. Williams will be allowed to strengthen the wing to ensure it conforms to the regulations for the race and still start from the back of the grid, as Haas did with Esteban Ocon in the Azerbaijan Grand Prix.