Racing Point says a post-race inspection of Lance Stroll's RP20 revealed a damaged front wing that "significantly" contributed to the tyre graining issue that undermined the Canadian's Turkish GP.
Stroll capitalized on his shock pole position to lead Sunday's race at the outset. Save for a handful of laps during the field's first pitstop rotations, the Racing Point charger put in a commanding performance until a tyre graining issue eroded his lead.
Alas, the problem went from bad to worse after the Canadian took on a second set of inters on lap 38, leaving the Racing Point charger to salvage a disappointing P9 finish.
After the race, Stroll admitted to being baffled by the graining issue, but on Monday, Racing Point took to social media to explain the origin of the driver's plight.
"During the team’s routine post-race car set down, we discovered damage to the underside of Lance Stroll's front wing that was a significant contributor to the graining issues he experienced during his 2nd and 3rd stints on the intermediate tyres at the Turkish GP," the team explained.
"Lance reported poor tyre performance, significant understeer and graining from lap 17 onwards in the race. Pitting for a fresh set of intermediates on lap 36 failed to resolve the problem, with the graining becoming even more severe.
"One of the strakes on the underside of the front wing had come loose and lodged itself in such a way that the blockage caused a significant loss of front downforce. The resultant loss of front downforce contributed to increased levels of graining.
"Data during the race confirmed there was a significant loss of front downforce - but with no visible damage to the top side of the front wing, combined with the low-grip conditions, it was difficult to confirm whether the data was correct.
"It was only after the race, when the car returned to the garage, that the damage and blockage to the underside of the front wing was discovered."
After Sunday's round in Instanbul and with three races to go, Racing Point now enjoys a 5-point lead over McLaren in the Constructors' standings, thanks in large part to Sergio Perez's runner-up spot at Istanbul Park.
Renault, which only scored a single point in Turkey, now sits 18 points adrift from racing Point in the championship.
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