F1NEWS: F1 Team Disqualified from Azerbaijan GP Qualifying....

F1 Team Disqualified from Azerbaijan GP Qualifying FIA for Fuel Flow Violation, Shaking Up the Results

The Azerbaijan Grand Prix qualifying results have been dramatically altered after Pierre Gasly was disqualified due to a fuel flow violation on his Alpine car. Following routine post-session inspections, Gasly’s car was flagged, leading to a review by the stewards. The French driver, who initially qualified in 13th position, has been relegated to the back of the grid after his power unit was found to have exceeded the maximum allowed fuel flow rate.

Gasly had originally qualified between Yuki Tsunoda of VCARB and Haas’ Nico Hulkenberg in P13. However, the 28-year-old is now set to start from the back of the grid after the FIA determined his Alpine car had breached the fuel flow regulations. According to the governing body’s report, Gasly’s car exceeded the permitted fuel flow rate of 100 kg/h during his final timed lap in Q2.

The FIA released an official statement regarding the disqualification: “The Technical Delegate reported that Car 10 exceeded the permitted 100kg/h fuel mass flow on the final timed lap of Q2. The team representatives explained that an unexpected, short-duration technical fault had occurred, causing the fuel mass flow to exceed the limit in a transient manner. The FIA technical staff agreed on the cause of the issue. However, the team did not dispute that the fuel flow exceeded the legal limit during that moment.”

Further clarifying the decision, the FIA referenced Article 1.3.3 of the International Sporting Code: “If an Automobile is found not to comply with the applicable technical regulations, it shall be no defence to claim that no performance advantage was obtained.” This has long been upheld by the International Court of Appeal. As a result, the FIA stewards applied the standard penalty for technical breaches, disqualifying both Gasly and his car from the final classification of qualifying.

Gasly’s disqualification compounds what has already been a difficult weekend for Alpine. Earlier in the weekend, his teammate Esteban Ocon experienced a power unit failure during FP3, which brought out the red flag. Ocon’s weekend troubles continued when he collided with the wall during his final Q1 run on Saturday. The two drivers’ combined setbacks have made this a challenging race weekend for Alpine.

The disqualification will benefit other drivers on the grid, with Lando Norris among the key beneficiaries. Norris, who was hindered by a yellow flag in sector three during his last Q1 lap, had qualified in P17. Gasly’s disqualification allows the McLaren driver to move up one spot to P16 on the grid for Sunday’s race, giving him a better starting position.

Gasly is not the only driver facing a setback for the Azerbaijan GP. Alfa Romeo’s Zhou Guanyu also finds himself at the back of the grid, despite initially finishing 19th in qualifying. Zhou was set to move up to P18 following Gasly’s demotion, but the Chinese driver took on two new engine components, incurring a grid penalty that will see him join Gasly at the rear of the field.

While several of the more experienced drivers had forgettable Saturdays, some of the younger talents on the grid impressed with their performances. Rookie Franco Colapinto outqualified his teammate Alex Albon and secured an impressive P9 starting position. Oliver Bearman also performed well, clinching a P11 starting spot, ahead of veteran Nico Hulkenberg.

As the grid is reshuffled ahead of Sunday’s race, the disqualification of Gasly and the penalties applied to Zhou have opened up opportunities for other drivers to capitalize on their improved starting positions. The Azerbaijan GP promises to be unpredictable, with drivers like Lando Norris and the rookies eager to make the most of their unexpected grid advances. Alpine, meanwhile, faces the task of overcoming a weekend marred by technical failures and penalties, as they hope to salvage points from a difficult start to the race.