Red Bull's Hadjar disqualified from Miami GP qualifying over floor violation

Red Bull junior driver Isack Hadjar has been disqualified from the Miami Grand Prix qualifying results after his car was found to be in breach of the technical regulations. The FIA discovered that the floor board on his RB22 was protruding 2mm beyond the permitted dimensions, forcing him to start Sunday's race from the pit lane instead of his original ninth-place grid spot.

Why it matters:

Technical disqualifications are a stark reminder of the precision required in Formula 1, where margins are measured in millimetres. For a young driver like Hadjar, losing a strong qualifying position—especially after Red Bull brought significant upgrades to Miami—is a major setback in gaining experience and proving his worth. It also highlights the intense scrutiny all cars are under, where even the smallest irregularity can nullify a team's on-track performance.

The Details:

• The FIA's technical delegate, Jo Bauer, reported that both the left-hand and right-hand sides of Hadjar's floor board were found to be 2mm outside the defined reference volume.
• This breach of Article C3.5.5 of the technical regulations led to an automatic referral to the race stewards and the subsequent disqualification from qualifying.
• Hadjar had qualified ninth, 0.825 seconds behind teammate Max Verstappen, who secured a front-row start alongside polesitter Andrea Kimi Antonelli.
• Before the disqualification was announced, Hadjar explained his struggle with Miami's low-grip, high-temperature conditions, citing difficulties in putting a complete lap together and a lack of straight-line speed compared to Verstappen.

What's next:

Hadjar will now start the Miami Grand Prix from the pit lane, a significant disadvantage on a track where overtaking can be challenging. The race start time has also been moved forward to 1 PM local time due to the threat of thunderstorms. For Red Bull, the incident is an operational error that overshadows the positive step forward seen in Verstappen's qualifying performance. Hadjar will need a remarkable recovery drive to salvage points from the weekend.