For the first time since the 2021 Hungarian GP, the FIA disqualified a driver from a race. And it wasn’t just one driver. At the US GP, Lewis Hamilton and Charles Leclerc fell prey to the FIA’s scrutineering post-race. Hamilton, who had a stellar weekend throughout, capped this year’s trip to Austin with a P2 finish. Not to mention, he could’ve won the race if he had a few more laps in hand. But that P2 lasted only a few hours because the FIA found that his car’s plank board had more wear than the legal limit. As a sporting and safety infringement, the governing body had no option but to disqualify the seven-time champion.

Because of how good a racing track COTA is, F1 decided to make the 2023 US GP a Sprint weekend. It wasn’t as exciting as the Qatar Sprint, but it also wasn’t a complete snooze fest. And even though the main race was quite engaging, it didn’t stop Max Verstappen from giving his thoughts on the format. Surprisingly, a Mercedes key figure shared his feelings (to some extent).

Sprint weekends are the bane of Verstappen and Mercedes’ existence

We all know how Verstappen feels about the format. “It’s not worth it for me. I’m not a fan of it at all,” he said. After the Sprint in Austin, he expressed his discontent again. “We’ve done this race. Everyone more or less knows what’s going to happen tomorrow. If I were a fan, I’d be disappointed. It takes away that magic of waking up on a Sunday morning, and you’re not sure which car will be quickest.” It’s true. Although Red Bull setting the pace, this weekend was evident, no one really knew the order following the Milton-Keynes outfit. 

Will McLaren be the second-fastest, or will it be Mercedes? After a good qualifying, could Ferrari be the best of the rest? Following the Sprint, it became clear that Mercedes had the best race pace after Red Bull, so everyone knew a podium finish for Hamilton was more than likely. What no one predicted was the disqualification that followed. Mercedes’ Trackside Engineering Director Andrew Shovlin gave his thoughts on the post-race chaos. He said, “We are, of course, naturally very disappointed to lose our podium finish. Unfortunately, it is one of the pitfalls of the Sprint format where we have a solitary hour of running before parc fermé.”

For Verstappen, it’s the mystery and excitement that’s lost because of the Sprint. For Shovlin and Mercedes, it’s critical practice running to understand the W14. “Without running at a race fuel load in FP1, combined with a circuit as bumpy as this and the parts of the track where the drivers have to put the car during the Grand Prix, have contributed to the higher-than-expected wear levels,” Shovlin added. 

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Despite losing a podium place (and a few points to Ferrari in the Constructors’ Championship), the Mercedes garage is focusing on the positives.

Lewis Hamilton & Co. are happy with the progress they’ve made

At the start of the season, even imagining Mercedes fighting for wins seemed unlikely. That was mostly because the Brackley team struggled to understand its car. The Sprint weekends didn’t help that case, and team principal Toto Wolff attested. At the Italian GP, he said, “The car is still so sensitive and difficult to set up that we need more [practice] sessions to get to grips with it. Weekends with the Sprint are not the best for us, precisely because the car is such a ‘diva.’” However, the team has made significant progress since then, especially considering its performances in Qatar and Austin.

Yes, Hamilton got disqualified, but the underlying fact is that the car is quick. With a new floor at the US GP that evidently worked, Mercedes is on the right path for 2024. Hamilton feels so, too. Following his disqualification, he said, “I feel positive as we’re moving forward, even if reflecting on it, we could have possibly won today. It is, of course, disappointing to be disqualified post-race, but that doesn’t take away from the progress we’ve made this weekend.”

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Can you see Lewis Hamilton finishing P2 in the Drivers’ Championship with the newfound confidence at Mercedes?