The seven current F1 drivers who have been disqualified from a Grand Prix

Lewis Hamilton receives his first disqualification during the 2009 Australian Grand Prix. While the reigning world champion had initially finished in fourth place, behind Button and Barrichello’s BrawnGP cars and Jarno Trulli’s Toyota, he is initially moved up to third place after the penalty is given to the Italian for overtaking the Brit under the safety car conditions.

But a few days later, the FIA discovers that Trulli had gone off track while the safety car was out. Hamilton had overtaken him before McLaren asked him to let the Toyota pass and avoid a potential penalty. The British driver is ultimately disqualified from the race because of his team’s slanderous remarks towards Toyota and Trulli.

The second and so far last disqualification of Hamilton dates back to the 2023 United States Grand Prix in Austin. The seven-time world champion finished the race in second place, behind Max Verstappen. However, he was disqualified due to a ‘non-compliant ride height’. The plank under the Mercedes had been too worn out during this weekend in the United States, which included a Sprint on Saturday. Charles Leclerc finished the race in sixth place and was disqualified for the same reason.

Perez’s illegal rear wing.

Sergio Perez will remember his very first Formula 1 race, which was marked by a disqualification. The Mexican, at the time a Sauber driver, had finished in seventh place in the Grand Prix. However, Perez and his teammate at the time, Kamui Kobayashi, were both disqualified due to their non-compliant rear wing.

James Key, the technical director of the team, stated that the drivers were victims of an error in the verification process by the FIA. However, the team decided not to appeal the decision.

The fuel flow and braking system are non-compliant for Ricciardo.

Daniel Ricciardo contested his very first Grand Prix with Red Bull, in his home country of Australia in 2014. The number 3 driver finished the race in second place, behind Nico Rosberg and ahead of Kevin Magnussen. The Australian displayed his widest smile while stepping onto the first podium of his career.

But in the evening, Ricciardo is disqualified for a ‘technical irregularity’. Red Bull had implemented an unauthorized method to measure the fuel flow rate of the car. A short-lived sadness as the Australian wins his first Grand Prix in Canada in the same year.

Five years later, in Suzuka, both Renault cars of Daniel Ricciardo and Nico Hülkenberg are disqualified despite finishing the race in sixth and tenth place respectively.

Racing Point had filed a protest against the French team. The cause was a braking distribution system, deemed illegal according to the FIA regulations, but yet considered legal from a technical standpoint.

Not enough petrol for Ocon and Magnussen.

The amount of fuel was also the reason for the disqualification of Esteban Ocon and Kevin Magnussen during the 2018 United States Grand Prix in Austin. The cars must finish the race with at least one kilogram of fuel remaining out of the 110 kilograms carried at the start.

The two drivers finished the race in eighth and ninth place, with the French driver ahead of the Danish one. But both had consumed too much fuel during the race. Ocon admitted, after the race, on Twitter, that he had pushed too hard to get good points.