Grosjean disqualified from Italian GP after Renault protest

Romain Grosjean has been excluded from the final results of the Italian Grand Prix after the floor on his Haas Formula 1 car was deemed illegal by the race stewards.

Grosjean had finished sixth at Haas to lift the team up to fourth place in the constructors’ championship, only for Renault to lodge a protest with the FIA-appointed stewards soon after the chequered flag at Monza.

FIA race director Charlie Whiting confirmed the matter related to the leading edge on the floor of Grosjean’s car, with the matter being investigated after the race.

In a bulletin issued by the FIA four hours after the race, the stewards said they found the floor to not be in compliance with the technical regulations, prompting them to request an inspection from the technical delegate.

“The stewards of the meeting have requested, that the technical delegate inspects the floor of car number 08, driver Romain Grosjean, for compliance with Article 3.7.1 d) of the 2018 Formula One Technical Regulations in relation to clarification given in TD/033-18 published on 25 July 2018,” the statement from the stewards reads.

“The reference plane of car number 08 is found not to be in compliance with Article 3.7.1 d) and the clarifications given in TD/033-18 published on 25 July 2018.”

In a later statement from the FIA, it was confirmed that Grosjean had been excluded from the final classification at Monza, leaving Haas without points. As a result, Renault remains fourth in the constructors’ championship.

The statement from the stewards confirms that Haas was told to change the floor on its car in order to comply with the regulations following a clarification of the rules in a technical directive issued at the end of July, stating that a "radius of 50mm (+/-2mm) must be applied to each front corner of the reference plane" on the floor. The refined ruling came into force from the Italian Grand Prix weekend.

Haas had requested to be given until Singapore to make the changes due to the summer shutdown, and requested some flexibility prior to Singapore, saying it was "at the mercy" of its suppliers on the matter.

The stewards said: "It was made clear to the competitor from the outset that the FIA Technical Department did not consider their car to be in compliance, and further that they left themselves open to the circumstances they now find," with a picture of the part at the start of the race being taken by Renault to the stewards. 

Force India drivers Esteban Ocon and Sergio Perez rise to sixth and seventh respectively ahead of Renault’s Carlos Sainz Jr.

Williams secures its first double-points finish since last year’s Malaysian Grand Prix as Sergey Sirotkin rises into the top 10 behind teammate Lance Stroll. It marks Sirotkin’s first point in F1, and means that all 20 drivers in this year’s championship have now scored points.

Haas has notified the FIA of its intention to appeal Grosjean's disqualification, as is the team's right. It has 96 hours to make its appeal formal. 

Team principal Guenther Steiner said: "We do not agree with the Stewards' decision to penalize our race team and we feel strongly that our sixth-place finish in the Italian Grand Prix should stand.

"We are appealing the Stewards' decision.”