Don’t like the result? Don’t worry, sport no longer ends on the field of play | Jonathan Liew

From the wrong headset in an F2 garage to Fifa overturning a red card, we are in a landscape where fairness is the enemy

A funny and very small thing happened at the Formula Two race at Spa on Sunday. Noel León, of Campos Racing, carved his way through the field to finish seventh, earning himself six points in the drivers’ championship, and promptly left the circuit to go and do whatever it is Noel León likes to do after a race. Take a nap, hit the Belgian brews, congratulate himself on his palindromic name – whatever. Anyway, while he was doing that, more than three hours after the chequered flag, the FIA governing body called a meeting and decided to disqualify him.

The reason: a serious breach of appendix 5 and article 21.5 of the F2 Sporting Regulations – and assuming you don’t have those to hand, it’s the rule governing the use of headsets. During the race, a guest of León had been spotted in the Campos garage wearing what was deemed the wrong type of headset. According to the aforementioned appendix 5, only listening devices may be used by non-team personnel. This headset had a microphone, albeit upturned and unused.

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