Noel León disqualified after Spa F2 headset breach ruled by FIA

Noel León was disqualified by the FIA following the Formula Two race at Spa, more than three hours after the chequered flag. The Campos Racing driver had initially been classified seventh and awarded six points.

León had advanced through the field to take seventh place and the six championship points that came with it before leaving the circuit. After the race the FIA convened and concluded that a serious breach of appendix 5 and article 21.5 of the F2 Sporting Regulations had occurred; those provisions concern the permitted use of headsets. The sanction arose from observations made in the Campos garage during the event.

Officials assembled more than three hours after the finish and announced the disqualification, citing appendix 5 and article 21.5 as the basis for their decision. The regulations named address communications equipment and the limits on what non-team personnel may wear in the garage. The timing of the meeting meant the result was changed well after the on-track action had concluded.

During the race a guest of León was seen in the Campos garage wearing a headset that was judged to be the wrong type for a non-team member. Appendix 5 specifies that only listening devices may be used by non-team personnel. The headset observed contained a microphone, albeit upturned and unused.

Jonathan Liew wrote: "From the wrong headset in an F2 garage to Fifa overturning a red card, we are in a landscape where fairness is the enemy".

The FIA ruling removed León’s seventh-place finish and the six points from the official classification. The decision was based on a technical breach relating to permitted equipment for non-team personnel rather than any on-track conduct.