Lawson disqualified from Mexico City qualifying over MGU-K power rampdown
Liam Lawson was disqualified from qualifying for the Mexico City Grand Prix after the stewards found his Racing Bulls cut MGU-K power too steeply at the end of his fastest Q2 lap. The team self-reported the breach and Lawson will start from the back of the grid.
The stewards' decision
Liam Lawson has been thrown out of qualifying for the Mexico City Grand Prix. According to Autosport, the stewards found a breach of the technical regulations on his fastest Q2 lap: when the battery ran out at the end of the lap, the MGU-K output fell from 350 kW to zero instantly, and Lawson did not lift off the throttle immediately after the control line. The regulations limit how quickly electrical deployment may be reduced, and the drop was faster than allowed, Autosport reports, citing article C5.12.6.
No advantage, but no excuse
The stewards accepted that Racing Bulls gained no performance advantage and that the team had disclosed the issue itself. They still ruled that non-compliance with the technical rules is not excused when no advantage is gained, and precedent required disqualification, according to both Autosport and Crash.net. Racing Bulls accepted the ruling. "While no advantage was gained, Liam will start tomorrow's race from the back of the grid," the team said, as quoted by Crash.net.
Autosport notes that the FIA had recently clamped down on rampdown tricks used deliberately by other teams, which makes Lawson's case different in intent but not in outcome.
A tough weekend for Lawson
Lawson had qualified eighth in the FIA classification, 0.515 s off Lewis Hamilton's pole time and ahead of team-mate Arvid Lindblad. His weekend had already included a grid penalty: after his second-practice clash with Max Verstappen, he was due to drop one place. Lindblad keeps his own result.
By the numbers
Before this weekend Lawson was ninth in the drivers' standings with 65 points, according to our data. The case is also a reminder of how closely the 2026 power units are policed: the rules govern not only how much electrical energy is used, but how fast deployment may be switched off.
What comes next
The Mexico City Grand Prix starts at 20:00 UTC (21:00 in Vienna) on Sunday. Lawson has to work his way through the field from the rear.
