Formula 1 race officials at the Sepang circuit had to execute a rapid last-minute fix on Thursday after eagle-eyed team members discovered that pole position had been painted on the wrong side during track inspections.
Rather than being positioned on the traditional right-hand side of the circuit as seen in previous Malaysian Grand Prix events, pole had been incorrectly shifted to the left due to an administrative miscommunication in paperwork preparations.
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Subscribe"The Malaysia officials had been told to put the pole on the left and they had duly done so," noted race organizers as the FIA quickly realized the error during routine Wednesday track checks.
The mistake forced ground crews to work swiftly on Thursday to paint over the erroneous white lines, shifting the entire grid numbering back to the correct configuration and adjusting the official start line accordingly.
Overcoming Administrative Grid Hiccups at Sepang
Despite the hasty adjustments required right before F1's much-anticipated return to the venue, the Sepang circuit successfully passed its official FIA circuit inspection without any further complications.
The unexpected grid realignment successfully averted potential timing system headaches, as the initial erroneous left-side pole had been painted ahead of the official start line.
While the reinstated traditional right-side pole still sat slightly within the strict one-meter minimum distance mandated by FIA regulations, crews managed to repaint the line slightly further in front of the slot.
Teams conducting track walks on Wednesday were the first to flag the unusual layout differences compared to past races held at the iconic Malaysian venue.