Lewis Hamilton disqualification proves Mercedes got lucky at Bahrain Grand Prix

Lewis Hamilton's debut season with Ferrari Formula 1 team has not got off to the fairytale start it was cracked up to be.

In the first four races of his 2025 campaign, the seven-time champion has only accumulated 25 points for the Scuderia, currently sitting P7 in the drivers' standings behind the Italian youngster who replaced him at his former Mercedes team.

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The British legend's most tumultuous race weekend this year occurred at round two in Shanghai, where he claimed his first victory in the sprint race and was then handed a post-race disqualification from Sunday's main event, all within 48 hours.

In contrast, both George Russell and new team-mate Kimi Antonelli have consistently picked up points to contribute to Mercedes' first campaign without Hamilton among their ranks, but last time out in Bahrain, Russell came incredibly close to meeting a similar fate to Hamilton back in 2021.

Why was Hamilton disqualified after 2021 Brazilian GP sprint?

Hamilton was disqualified after the qualifying session for the 2021 Brazilian sprint race due to an infringement found on the rear wing of his car, stripping him of his P1 starting position and instead forcing him to start from the back of the grid.

At the time, the stewards explained why they had handed the penalty to Hamilton ahead of the sprint, saying: "In lay terms, there is a gap between the upper and lower parts of the rear wing. When the DRS is not activated this gap must be between 10mm and 15mm. The car passed this part of the test.

"When DRS is activated, which raises the upper element of the wing to a flatter position, the gap must be between 10mm and 85mm. The maximum gap is measured, in accordance with TD/011-19, by pushing an 85mm gauge against the gap with a maximum load of 10N (ten newtons.) If the gauge goes through then the car has failed the test.

"In this case, the gauge would not pass through at the inner section of the wing, but did at the outer section of the wing. This test was repeated four times with two different gauges, once being done in the presence of the stewards and representatives of the competitor."

How did Russell and Mercedes avoid punishment at 2025 Bahrain GP?

This occasion in Brazil was under completely different circumstances to Hamilton's first disqualification with Ferrari and the situation that saw Russell investigated by the FIA after the 2025 Bahrain GP, but it poses the question as to whether Toto Wolff's outfit got lucky last weekend?

Following a successful race in Sakhir, Russell crossed the line P2, but shortly after Sunday's race, the 27-year-old was placed under investigation by the FIA with his podium finish under threat over an alleged DRS infringement.

Whilst Hamilton's 2021 disqualification came as a result of a gapping issue with his DRS, Russell's investigation was due to an alleged breach of rules governing when DRS may be activated.

The Mercedes star activated DRS manually after struggling with electronic issues during the race. He did so however outside of the DRS zone, intending instead to use his team radio.

"At the time the driver was experiencing a brake-by-wire issue and other electronic issues," a verdict from the stewards read. "He was at that time advised to use an auxiliary button in the cockpit which serves as a back-up radio button but also serves as a manual DRS activation button.

"On the straight between Turns 10 and 11 he tried to radio the team using this button but instead accidentally activated the DRS. The DRS was activated for a distance of 37 metres on a straight of approximately 700 metres. Whilst he gained 0.02 seconds, he gave up 0.28 seconds at the next corner to compensate. This was confirmed by telemetry.

"Accordingly, whilst technically a breach occurred the Stewards decide that as there was no sporting advantage gained, no penalty is imposed."

Whilst Russell likely saved himself from a penalty by slowing down at the following corner to compensate, Hamilton's 2021 disqualification for a DRS infringement demonstrates how strict the FIA and the stewards have been in the past over similar issues.

Although it might not have been a disqualification verdict as Hamilton faced, even a five-second time penalty would have seen Russell lose his podium finish.

The star from King's Lynn can therefore perhaps count his lucky stars that the stewards sided with him and decided not to throw the rather weighty FIA rulebook at him.

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