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In a dramatic twist after the chequered flag, McLaren drivers Lando Norris and Oscar Piastri have been disqualified from their second and fourth-place finishes at the 2025 Las Vegas Grand Prix. Both MCL39 cars failed the mandatory post-race skid block inspection, handing Max Verstappen a huge boost in the championship fight.
What exactly went wrong with the McLaren cars?
FIA technical delegates discovered that the rearmost skid wear on both McLaren cars measured below the minimum 9mm thickness required by Article 3.5.9 of the Technical Regulations. When the parts were re-measured in front of the stewards and McLaren representatives, the wear was found to be even greater than initially reported.
The stewards’ official document
The stewards' document stated that the skid blocks on both cars were "measured and found to be below the minimum thickness of 9mm specified under Article 3.5.9 of the Technical Regulations."
"The rear skids were re-measured in the presence of the Stewards and the three McLaren representatives, and those measurements confirmed that the skids did not comply with the regulations. The relevant measurements were even lower than those measured originally by the Technical Delegate," it added, confirming the disqualifications of the McLaren drivers.
McLaren's argument regarding the disqualification
The team argued there were mitigating circumstances, FP1 was heavily disrupted by rain, and the short practice schedule left little time to fine-tune ride height. They insisted the breach was unintentional.
The stewards accepted that McLaren had no deliberate intent to cheat but ruled that “the fact that the car was not legal at the time of the inspection is the fundamental issue.”
How does this change the 2025 Drivers’ championship?
The disqualifications reduced 33 points off McLaren’s tally (18 for Norris, 15 for Piastri). With only Qatar and Abu Dhabi remaining, the title battle has now become tough.
Updated F1 Drivers’ championship standings after Las Vegas GP
1. Lando Norris (McLaren) – 390 points
2. Oscar Piastri (McLaren) – 366 points
3. Max Verstappen (Red Bull) – 366 points
4. George Russell (Mercedes) – 294 points
5. Charles Leclerc (Ferrari) – 226 points
6. Lewis Hamilton (Ferrari) – 152 points
7. Kimi Antonelli (Mercedes) – 137 points
8. Alexander Albon (Williams) – 73 points
9. Isack Hadjar (RB) – 51 points
10. Nico Hülkenberg (Kick Sauber) – 49 points
Verstappen is now level with Piastri and only 24 points behind Norris, with 58 points still available.
Has this happened before in 2025?
Lewis Hamilton lost a Chinese Grand Prix result, and Nico Hülkenberg was excluded from Bahrain for identical skid block offences earlier this season. The plank rule remains one of the strictest in the sport.
What did the drivers say before the disqualification?
Speaking immediately after the race, Lando Norris was puzzled by late-race instructions to lift and coast due to a possible fuel issue, “I don’t know what the issues were. The team just told me there were some problems and they were telling me to back off.”
Oscar Piastri, who fought back from early contact with Liam Lawson, added, “The team did a really good job in getting our race back on track with strategy… a bit of a feeling of more on the table.”
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