Just after 1:30 a.m. on Sunday, November 23, 2025, the Las Vegas Grand Prix ended not with fireworks, but with a technical bombshell. Lando Norris, the British sensation driving for McLaren Racing Limited, and his teammate Oscar Piastri, the Australian rising star, were both disqualified from the race after their McLaren MCL39 cars were found with skid planks worn below the legal limit. The ruling, confirmed by the FIA, didn’t just erase two podium finishes—it flipped the 2025 Formula 1 championship on its head.
The Violation: A Tiny Gap, Massive Consequences
The issue wasn’t a broken wing or an illegal exhaust. It was something subtle, almost invisible: the skid plank. A carbon-fiber block bolted beneath every F1 car, it’s designed to limit ground effect and ensure cars don’t run too low to the track. The rules demand a minimum thickness of 9 millimeters. Post-race scans showed Norris’s MCL39 had worn down to 8.88mm on the front right and 8.93mm on the rear right. Piastri’s car was even worse—measurements confirmed below 9mm across multiple points. The FIA didn’t just take one reading. They rechecked. In front of McLaren’s engineers. And still, the numbers didn’t lie. "La FIA a rappelé qu’aucune alternative à la disqualification n’existe pour ce type de manquement, quelles que soient les circonstances ou le degré d’intentionnalité," read their official statement. Translation: no excuses. No leniency. Even if the wear was caused by a bumpy corner or a misjudged curb, the rules are absolute. It’s not a penalty—it’s a disqualification. And this isn’t the first time this season. Lewis Hamilton of Scuderia Ferrari was DQ’d in China. Nico Hülkenberg of Stake F1 Team Kick Sauber faced the same fate in Bahrain. This is becoming a pattern—and teams are still falling into the trap.The Championship Domino Effect
Before the disqualifications, Norris was cruising. He’d finished second behind Max Verstappen of Oracle Red Bull Racing, while Piastri was fourth. That meant Norris had extended his lead over Piastri to 30 points and over Verstappen to 42. The title felt like his to lose. Now? All that evaporated. Norris lost 18 points. Piastri lost 12. The standings? Norris still leads with 390 points. But Verstappen and Piastri? Both at 366. Piastri is ranked second because he’s won more races this season. That’s right—the driver who finished fourth in Las Vegas is now technically ahead of the race winner. "It’s the kind of twist you’d script for a movie," said Kieran Jackson of The Independent. "Norris’s shock disqualification… has handed his rivals the biggest of reprieves. Ironically, the double McLaren DSQ is a much-needed saving grace for the Australian. His deficit was 30 points; now it’s back to 24."McLaren’s Response: Apology, Not Excuse
McLaren Racing Limited, headquartered in Woking, Surrey, England, UK, didn’t fight the ruling. Team principal Andrea Stella issued a swift apology to both drivers. "We let them down," he said. "We didn’t manage the plank wear properly. It’s on us. They raced clean. They deserved better." The team admitted they’d been pushing the limits of the plank’s lifespan this season, betting on the assumption that the wear would stay within tolerance. But in Las Vegas, with its bumpy, curbed street circuit, the car’s aerodynamic loads and track surface combined in a way no simulation predicted. The team didn’t cheat. They just underestimated physics.
What This Means for the Final Two Races
With only 58 points left to fight over—18 for a win, 15 for second, 12 for third, and so on—the championship is now a three-way free-for-all. The next race is the Qatar Grand Prix at Lusail International Circuit in Lusail, Qatar. Then, the season finale: a sprint-format race at the Losail International Circuit—yes, same location as Qatar, just a different layout. Verstappen, who won in Vegas, is now within 24 points of Norris. Piastri, who had not stood on a podium since Monza in September, suddenly has a lifeline. And McLaren? They’ve lost 30 constructor points, giving Red Bull a fighting chance to close the gap in the team standings too. The irony? Norris was leading the championship by the widest margin of the season. Now, he’s the one under pressure. The car that looked untouchable just 48 hours ago is now under a microscope. Every corner, every curb, every millimeter of plank wear will be scrutinized.Why This Matters Beyond the Points
This isn’t just about who wins the title. It’s about how teams interpret regulation boundaries. F1 is a sport of millimeters and microseconds. Skid plank wear is one of those invisible lines that separates brilliance from disaster. Teams have been pushing aerodynamic efficiency to the edge for years. This ruling says: no matter how clever your design, if you wear the plank too thin, you’re out. It also raises questions about testing. Did McLaren’s simulation software miss the Las Vegas track’s unique impact? Did they rely too heavily on data from other street circuits? And why, after Hamilton and Hülkenberg’s disqualifications, did they still gamble? For fans, it’s a gift. Three drivers, all with a shot. Two races left. No clear favorite. That’s what F1 used to be—and what it’s become again.Frequently Asked Questions
How did the skid plank wear happen in Las Vegas specifically?
The Las Vegas Strip Circuit features sharp, high-curbing sections and an uneven asphalt surface that increases downward forces on the car’s underbody. McLaren’s aerodynamic setup, optimized for high downforce, pressed the skid plank harder against these curbs than expected. Even slight imperfections in the track surface caused localized wear beyond what simulations predicted, leading to measurements of 8.88mm and 8.93mm—just under the 9mm legal minimum.
Why is the FIA so strict about skid plank wear?
The skid plank is a critical safety and fairness device. It prevents teams from running the car dangerously low to the ground to maximize ground effect aerodynamics. If allowed to wear too thin, cars could gain unfair downforce, making overtaking harder and increasing crash risks. The FIA enforces this rule uniformly to keep competition level and ensure cars remain within design limits, regardless of intent.
Could Norris or Piastri appeal the disqualification?
No. The FIA’s technical regulations explicitly state that any plank measurement below 9mm triggers an automatic disqualification with no right of appeal. This was confirmed by stewards after a second, independent measurement in the presence of McLaren’s technical team. Even if the wear was unintentional, the rules leave no room for interpretation—making this one of the most unforgiving regulations in motorsport.
What’s the impact on McLaren’s constructor championship hopes?
McLaren lost 30 constructor points—18 for Norris’s second place and 12 for Piastri’s fourth. That cuts their lead over Oracle Red Bull Racing from 37 points to just 7. With only 58 points left, Red Bull can now overtake them in the team standings if Verstappen wins both remaining races and McLaren scores no more than 10 points combined. The pressure is now on McLaren to avoid further technical penalties.
Who benefits most from this disqualification?
Max Verstappen gains the most. He was 42 points behind Norris before the race. Now, he’s only 24 points back and has momentum after his Vegas win. Oscar Piastri also benefits—his deficit to Norris is halved, and he’s now tied with Verstappen in points, giving him a psychological edge. But Verstappen, with his race-winning consistency, is now the favorite to clinch the title if he wins in Qatar and scores well in the finale.
Has this kind of disqualification happened before in F1 history?
Yes. In 2007, Felipe Massa and Kimi Räikkönen were disqualified from the Monaco Grand Prix for skid plank violations. In 2019, Charles Leclerc’s Ferrari was DQ’d in Singapore for the same reason. But this season has been unusually brutal: Hamilton (China), Hülkenberg (Bahrain), and now Norris and Piastri (Las Vegas). The FIA appears to be tightening enforcement, likely in response to increasingly aggressive aerodynamic designs pushing the limits of the plank’s durability.