Racing series are often at pains to avoid changing results after the chequered flag falls – especially when it comes to naming a new winner.
But although the 2024 motorsport season is still young, five drivers have already lost victories due to post-race stewards’ decisions.
Are over-zealous officials needlessly robbing drivers of deserved wins? Or are these five unconnected and justified decisions?
Josef Newgarden
IndyCar, Grand Prix of St Petersburg
When Josef Newgarden stormed to victory in the opening race of the new IndyCar season, it looked like a declaration of intent by the two-times champion for the campaign ahead. Then came last week’s shocking news.
Over six weeks after the chequered flag dropped on the season-opener, IndyCar announced Newgarden and Penske team mate Scott McLaughlin (originally third) had been disqualified for using their push-to-pass systems when they were supposed to be disabled. The push-to-pass systems were unlawfully enabled on all three Penske cars, but Will Power escaped disqualification because he hadn’t activated his outside of the prescribed times.
Had this happened in F1, there’s a good chance all three would have had the same sanction. Non-compliance with the technical regulations in the world championship almost invariably leads to disqualification.
Even so, by IndyCar’s standards, the penalties were arguably stiff: Other drivers have failed technical inspections yet kept their wins, notably Justin Wilson at Texas in 2012 (non-compliant parts) and Sebastien Bourdais at Milwaukee in 2015 (underweight).
But there was arguably a political dimension to this case. Those past wins were rare triumphs by underdog teams. Had IndyCar been that lenient on Penske – not merely a powerhouse operation but the team of series owner Roger Penske – the uproar would have been greater still.
Richard Verschoor
Formula 2, Jeddah Corniche Circuit sprint race
Penske’s error allegedly involved the use of software devised for testing the series’ forthcoming hybrid power units. A software error also cost Richard Verschoor victory in the third race for Formula 2’s new cars.
After his win, the stewards discovered the team had used an outdated 2023-specification throttle pedal progressivity map, which determines how much power is delivered as the driver presses the accelerator….
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