The FIA has disqualified Hitech Pulse-Eight’s Paul Aron from the FIA Formula 2 Sprint Race in Abu Dhabi. This decision came after Aron’s car, Car 17 was found in breach of technical regulations.
Car 17 in breach of Article 1.5.2 of FIA Formula 2 Technical Regulations
According to Document 50 of the 2024 Yas Marina Event, “the DRS actuator on Car 17 was found to have been modified to extend the length of the piston by 1 millimetre, allowing a wider opening of the DRS wing.” This modification violates Article 2 of the FIA Formula 2 Technical Regulations, which prohibits the modification of any parts of the F2 car, except where specifically permitted.
Hitech Pulse-Eight admitted replacing the DRS actuator on Aron’s car during qualifying. They claimed that the original actuator had been replaced with a spare after it malfunctioned. However, the team could not explain why the actuator was modified or why it did not meet specification requirements.
Aron stripped of P3 sprint finish
As a result, Aron received the standard penalty for the breach and was disqualified from the Sprint Race. He lost his P3 finish and the 15 points. All cars originally behind Aron moved up one position in the classification. This, fortunately, has no impact on Aron’s championship hopes. His P3 finish had not been enough to keep him in the fight with Bortoleto and Hadjar. With Zane Maloney having left the series and Jak Crawford more than 38 points behind in the standings, Aron will still finish P3 in the Drivers’ Championship, even if he fails to score points during Sunday’s race.
Aron further penalised due to the “seriousness” of offence
In addition to the disqualification, the Stewards opted to impose an additional penalty. They stated that they believed that Hitech Pulse-Eight was aware of the non-conformity of the installed DRS actuator. They ruled that the modification had been deliberate. As such, due to the “seriousness and nature of the offence”, the Stewards ordered that Aron start the Abu Dhabi Feature Race (“Race 2”) from the pitlane.
