McLaren has apologised to drivers Oscar Piastri and Lando Norris after the pair was disqualified from the Las Vegas F1 Grand Prix.
The disqualification came after it was found the skid blocks — also known as the plank — that runs underneath the car had worn too much during the course of the race.
The plank is 10mm thick and cannot wear more than 1mm during a race.
At its worst spots, Norris's plank had worn by 1.12mm and Piastri's by 1.26mm.
Wearing happens when the bottom of the car drags along the track. The rule exists to stop teams from running their cars too low, which gives the vehicle an aerodynamic advantage.
Two previous plank disqualifications — in Shanghai earlier this year and in Austin in 2023 — came during sprint weekends and had been explained as teams not having enough time to practise and verify calculations around fuel load and suspension configuration.
Wet weather in Las Vegas had made it difficult for teams to lock in a configuration that would suit qualification and withstand the race, while the bumpiness of the Vegas circuit also meant a greater risk to the plank wearing down.
However, McLaren was the only team to make a mistake.
Sensors on the plank can tell the team that it is wearing more than usual during a race, but there is no way to judge exactly how much wear the plank has endured. The team had directed the drivers to drive more conservatively mid-race, suggesting they knew there was an issue.
"The skid wear of car numbers 81 and 04 was checked," the technical delegate's report read.
"The rearmost skid was measured on both cars according to the team's submission in accordance with TD039 M, item 1.2 b) i).
"The measured thickness was less than 9mm on both cars, which is the minimum thickness required by TR Article 3.5.9 e)."
Team apologises to drivers
McLaren said the breach was unintentional, and a high level of "porpoising" had caused the error. Porpoising is the rhythmic bounce of the bottom car during the race.
"We apologise to Lando and Oscar for the loss of points today, at a critical time in their championship campaigns after two strong performances from them all weekend," team principal Andrea Stella said in a McLaren statement.
"During the race, both cars experienced unexpected, high levels of porpoising not seen in the practice sessions, which led to excessive contact with the ground.
"We are investigating the reasons for this behaviour of the car, including the effect of accidental damage sustained by both cars, which we found after the race, and that led to an increase of movement of the floor.
"As the FIA noted, the breach was unintentional."
McLaren had argued that interrupted practice sessions — including one that was almost completely wiped out due to a loose drainage cover — qualified as mitigating circumstances.
Race stewards wrote that while they did agree that the breach was unintentional, there was no provision for a lesser punishment than disqualification.
"The team submitted that the degree of the breach was lower than prior breaches of this regulation in 2025," a statement read.
"The FIA argued that, unfortunately, there was no provision in the regulations or in precedent for any penalty other than the usual penalty [i.e., disqualification].
"The FIA noted that it strongly held the view that the breach was unintentional and that there was not a deliberate attempt to circumvent the regulations."
Drivers react
The incident has left Norris in particular in a precarious position with two races and a sprint left in the calendar, with Las Vegas winner Max Verstappen now sitting equal with Piastri on points, just behind Norris.
"Disappointing to come away from this weekend with no points after an unfortunate disqualification due to skid wear," Australian star Piastri said.
"With how close the grid is, we're always looking at where we can gain performance, and we didn't get it right this time.
"We now need to reset, refocus and push to get the best points possible in the final two rounds, both tracks that we've been strong at previously."
Norris said he was frustrated as his title hopes looked more uncertain.
"A frustrating end to today," Norris said.
"We had to do some managing towards the end of the race, and now we know it was due to some issues with our car, which have unfortunately resulted in us being disqualified.
"It's frustrating to lose so many points. As a team, we're always pushing to find as much performance as we can, and we clearly didn't get that balance right today."
