Red Bulls disqualified from qualifying, will start from back of grid

Both Daniel Ricciardo and Sebastian Vettel have been disqualified from qualifying in Abu Dhabi after race stewards declared Red Bull Racing’s front wing illegal. The pair will start from the back of the grid.

The team was called before the stewards following the session when FIA Technical Delegate Jo Bauer reported that the front wing flaps were “designed to flex under aerodynamic load", which he deemed a contravention of Article 3.15 of F1’s technical regulations banning moveable aerodynamic elements.

Sources suggest that, although several teams have presented here this weekend with an element which flexes, the Red Bull one is achieved with some form of mechanical spring, which the stewards have deemed is outside the rules.

So Red Bull ends the season as it started it; at loggerheads with the FIA over technical matters. In Melbourne Daniel Ricciardo was disqualified from second place for fuel flow meter irregularities. The team and the federation have been battling ever since, with the team particularly critical of the hybrid turbo power units the federation has introduced this year.

The stewards ruled that Ricciardo, who qualified fifth, and Vettel, who was set to start his final grand prix for the team from sixth on the grid, should be disqualified from the qualifying result. Both, however, will be permitted to start the race from the back of the grid. An initial revised grid shows Ricciardo starting last behind Vettel, which is odd as he qualified ahead of his German colleague. This is being clarified.

Ironically the main beneficiary of this is Daniel Kvyat, who will replace Vettel next season at Red Bull. He will start from 5th on the grid, equalling his best start position of the year in Sochi.

Red Bull Racing accepted the sanction but says it is just one of the number of teams using such wings.

"Following the decision of the stewards regarding the front wings on both our cars (Car 1 and Car 3), we are disappointed that we have been singled out for a front wing deflection test when it is clear that other teams are interpreting the rules in a similar fashion,” a team statement read. "The team accepts the decision of the stewards and will start the race from the back of the grid."