Red Bull Protest Forces F1 Cars Higher at Las Vegas

FIA Bans Skid Plates: Ferrari, Mercedes Hit Before Vegas

21/11/2024

The FIA’s skid plate ban, triggered by Red Bull, forces Ferrari and Mercedes to adjust ahead of the Las Vegas GP.

Formula 1 has surprised teams by banning protective elements on the “skid plates” under the 2024 cars.

In the new ground-effect era, driving as close to the track as possible offers a performance advantage—but the risk is excessive plank wear, rendering the car illegal.

Many teams devised special protective solutions, with nearly half finding a loophole in the regulations through innovative skid plate designs that generate the iconic sparks.

Red Bull filed a complaint with the FIA against rivals like Ferrari, Mercedes, and Haas F1, warning of potential protests if the governing body failed to act.

A week before the Las Vegas GP, all teams received a technical directive by mail. The FIA announced that the protective skid plates in question were not permitted.

Ferrari had hoped to delay the ban until the Qatar Grand Prix but failed to secure approval.

This decision could force teams like Ferrari to raise their car ride height for the remaining three races of the season, resulting in a loss of performance.

FIA Bans Skid Plates: Ferrari, Mercedes Hit Before Vegas

Red Bull Protest Forces F1 Cars Higher at Las Vegas Red Bull Protest Forces F1 Cars Higher at Las Vegas

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Full 2025 F1 testing results

Carlos Sainz
1
CARLOS
SAINZ
Leader
Lewis Hamilton
2
LEWIS
HAMILTON
+0.031s
Charles Leclerc
3
CHARLES
LECLERC
+0.083s
George Russell
4
GEORGE
RUSSELL
+0.197s
Max Verstappen
5
MAX
VERSTAPPEN
+0.218s
Alex Albon
6
ALEX
ALBON
+0.302s
Kimi Antonelli
7
KIMI
ANTONELLI
+0.436s
Oscar Piastri
8
OSCAR
PIASTRI
+0.592s
Pierre Gasly
9
PIERRE
GASLY
+0.692s
Lance Stroll
10
LANCE
STROLL
+0.881s
Liam Lawson
11
LIAM
LAWSON
+0.904s
Jack Doohan
12
JACK
DOOHAN
+1.020s
Yuki Tsunoda
13
YUKI
TSUNODA
+1.149s
Isack Hadjar
14
ISACK
HADJAR
+1.327s
Fernando Alonso
15
FERNANDO
ALONSO
+1.352s
Esteban Ocon
16
ESTEBAN
OCON
+1.380s
Lando Norris
17
LANDO
NORRIS
+1.534s
Gabriel Bortoleto
18
GABRIEL
BORTOLETO
+1.709s
Nico Hulkenberg
19
NICO
HULKENBERG
+2.109s
Oliver Bearman
20
OLIVER
BEARMAN
+3.013s

Testing Total Distance Covered by Team

1
Mercedes
458
2
Haas
457
3
Racing Bulls
454
4
Alpine
405
5
Williams
395
6
Ferrari
382
7
McLaren
381
8
Sauber
354
9
Aston Martin
306
10
Red Bull
304
Race Center
Australia Flag
Australian GP
13 Mar - 16 Mar
FP1
14 MAR 01:30
FP2
14 MAR 05:00
FP3
15 MAR 01:30
QU
15 MAR 05:00
RACE
16 MAR 04:00
F1 CALENDAR 2025
Race
Date
Australian Flag
Australian
Albert Park
16 Mar
Chinese Flag
Chinese
Shanghai International
23 Mar
Japanese Flag
Japanese
Suzuka Circuit
6 Apr
Bahrain Flag
Bahrain
Sakhir desert
13 Apr
Saudi Arabia Flag
Saudi Arabia
Jeddah Street
20 Apr
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