“The performance of the car was positive,” Vowles explained. “We’re in a situation where that update is now producing good results and, in a very tight midfield, we’re able to put the car back into that [Q3] position, back into a points-scoring position for the race today.
“That’s also mirrored by a long run that again was positive. It had pulled clear of the midfield and we were in a situation, in fact at times, where a long run was overlaying with Ferrari, which is a very different situation to what we’ve been to at the beginning of the season.
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“As positive as that is, the facts are we were disqualified for a floor that was too wide. And my job here today is to go through what has happened and what we’re doing to immediately address the situation.”
Reflecting further on how the mistake had happened, Vowles continued: “The floor we have here this weekend – in fact, the whole bodywork of items – are all new. It’s not the first time we’ve been scanned. We’ve obviously been following and complying to all of these procedures since they were brought into place several years ago, and [we] haven’t been found in excess until now.
