BREAKING: Disqualification of Vettel stands, FIA rejects protest

The FIA has announced that it will not reverse the disqualification of Sebastian Vettel at the end of the Hungarian Grand Prix. With that, Lewis Hamilton climbs to second place almost permanently and Carlos Sainz gets his podium place after all.

Vettel drove an excellent race in Hungary and crossed the finish line second behind Esteban Ocon. However, when the stewards checked the amount of fuel in the car, it was reportedly no more than 0.3 litres. However, the regulations state that Aston Martin must provide a minimum of 1.0 litres, so Vettel immediately had to worry about disqualification.

At the end of last week, Aston Martin indicated that they had significant evidence that the stewards' inspection had not been carried out properly. Vettel's team even claimed that 1.74 litres was present in the German's car. According to Aston Martin, a problem with the fuel pump prevented more fuel from coming out of the car, which would have disqualified Vettel unlawfully.

The team was allowed to tell its story at 3pm today, but the FIA did not consider it sufficient evidence to actually overturn the disqualification. The appeal against the penalty still stands, but it is as yet unknown how likely it is that Aston Martin will win it.