Bad news for Ferrari as team summoned by Japanese GP stewards

Fresh from their Chinese GP trouble, Ferrari are in trouble once again as they face a summons by the FIA stewards, and this time in Japan. As per reports, Ferrari, along with Aston Martin, were called by the stewards following the conclusion of FP sessions on Friday for not adhering to the race director's directives.

As reported by Racingnews365, Ferrari and Aston Martin breached race director Rui Marques's pre-event notes, where he notified the teams about the usage of the fast lane in the pit lane. The fast lane is a normal lane for drivers in the pit lane, but its usage comes under a special directive.

As per Marques' direction, drivers need to blend into the fast lane soon after getting out of the garage. However, Lewis Hamilton of Ferrari and Lance Stroll of Aston Martin did not do it in FP2, and as a result, breached the regulation. This resulted in the FIA stewards calling Ferrari and Aston Martin to report to them at 17:15 local time.

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This comes right after Ferrari's woes from China when both of its drivers faced disqualification from the Shanghai race. Despite finishing the race within points, the FIA stewards disqualified Lewis Hamilton, Charles Leclerc of Ferrari, and Pierre Gasly of Alpine for breaching the technical regulations.

According to reports, Hamilton's SF-25 had more plank wear than the permitted limit, whereas Leclerc's Ferrari was underweight, and so was Gasly's Alpine. This led to a loss of huge chunks of championship points for Ferrari, Lewis Hamilton and Charles Leclerc.

How did Ferrari perform in FP1 and FP2?

Scuderia Ferrari arrived in Japan to make amends for the Chinese GP and get back into the championship fight against McLaren, Mercedes and Red Bull. Focusing on the same, the Prancing Horse drivers had a formidable outing in Suzuka on Friday.

Charles Leclerc of Monaco driving the (16) Scuderia Ferrari SF-25 and Lewis Hamilton of Great Britain driving the (44) Scuderia Ferrari SF-25 in the Pitlane during practice ahead of the F1 Grand Prix of Japan - Source: Getty

In FP1, Charles Leclerc managed 1:28.965, which put him in P3, behind Lando Norris of McLaren and George Russell of Mercedes. Leclerc was over four-tenths slower than Norris. Leclerc's teammate, Lewis Hamilton, managed 1:29.051 on the timesheet and was around a tenth slower than Leclerc.

In FP2, Hamilton managed 1:28.544 and P4 on the board, and compared to him, Leclerc settled for P7 with 1:28.586 on the timesheet. Oscar Piastri of McLaren took P1 ahead of his teammate, Norris, in this session.

About the author

Sabyasachi Biswas is a passionate motorsport journalist for Sportskeeda, with a Master's degree in Mass Communication and Journalism. He has over eight years of experience in the field and has over 10000 published articles on the internet.

As a dedicated follower of motorsport, Sabyasachi watches events closely, ensuring his reports are thorough and supported by reputable sources. He is inspired by Max Verstappen’s fearless attitude and dreams of attending the Indian GP if it returns to the calendar. An ardent F1 fan over the years, he enjoyed watching Felipe Massa and Sebastian Vettel and is now following Verstappen's dominant journey on the track.

Apart from F1, he is a big-time NASCAR and football (also soccer) fan. Sabyasachi supports Kyle Larson of Hendrick Motorsports and Spanish club, Real Madrid.

He was a sub-junior level footballer and won inter-district quizzes and debate competitions back in school. A travel freak by nature, Sabyasachi likes to try different cuisines and learn about new cultures. When away from his keyboard, he enjoys soccer, geopolitics, and playing with Khushi & Ubbu - his adorable beagles.

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Edited by Sudeshna Banerjee