F1: McLaren and Renault forced to break curfew regulations after freight arrives late

What's the story?

Late shipping affects us each and every one of us, as it turns out. Renault and McLaren were the two unfortunate teams this weekend that had to break the F1 curfew rules after it became clear that their BP/Castrol lubricants necessary to run their cars would not make it to the teams on time.

The FIA have granted dispensation to both the teams after it became clear that this was a case of 'force majeure' or an unforeseeable circumstance caused due to storms in Osaka.

In case you didn't know...

The missing piece of the puzzle in this case was much-needed hydraulic and oil fluids which are required to run the cars of both teams. Though Red Bull also has the Renault engine, they use Exxon/Mobil instead of BP/Castrol and hence haven't had to face this issue.

The heart of the matter

The F1 curfew was set at 7 AM and it became apparent that the freight was not going to reach Suzuka on time after the diversion to Tokyo due to storms in Osaka, and it took F1's freight organisation some serious following-up to find out how long it would take for the goods to finally arrive.

Once dispensation was granted and the goods finally arrived, the stewards noted that this was Renault's first curfew exception and McLaren's second, both within the permissible limits of two exceptions without penalisation.

What's next?

This may have been considered a case of force majeure, but both Renault and McLaren know what they have to contend with as they look to perform strongly in qualifying tomorrow and the final race in Suzuka on Sunday.

Can Renault and McLaren mount a significant challenge this weekend? Let us know your take in the comments.