Ricciardo said Vettel’s penalty for speeding under red flag conditions is fair, on the basis of his own penalty in Australia.
Safety articles archive
Safety
Teams considering new kinds of cockpit protection
2011 F1 season
Posted onA fully enclosed cockpit is among three solutions being considered to improve driver protection.
How hard was Massa hit?
Posted onThe stories of Massa’s accident three days have been everywhere. But how much do we really understand about how hard a blow Massa suffered when he was struck by that spring? F1 Fanatic guest writer Kareem Shaya tries to put the crash into perspective. In all the discussion of Felipe Massa’s qualifying accident at the … Continue reading How hard was Massa hit?
Why F1 will be better without refuelling
Posted onIn October 1993 the first meeting of the FIA World Motor Sports Council announced that refuelling would be re-introduced into F1 for the 1994 season. Earlier this week the same body confirmed refuelling will be banned in 2010 – leading to a mixed reaction from fans. I’ve been surprised how many comments have been posted … Continue reading Why F1 will be better without refuelling
Lessons for F1 in NASCAR’s horror crash
Posted onCarl Edwards’ crash in the closing stages of last weekend’s NASCAR race at Talladega has sparked debate among racing fans: Was this just a freak accident in a championship that engineers crashes for the entertainment of its fans – or are there lessons here for Formula 1 too?
Soft tyre rule: exciting or artificial? (Poll)
Posted onThis weekend the drivers will once again have to cope with the ?óÔé¼?£super soft?óÔé¼Ôäó tyre. It made for interesting racing in Australia ?óÔé¼ÔÇ£ but should F1 be resorting to gimmicks like forcing drivers to use un-competitive tyres?
The new safety car rules are an improvement but could still go wrong
Posted onThe final 2009 F1 rules published by the FIA a few weeks ago revealed that the much-derided ?óÔé¼?£pit lane closure?óÔé¼Ôäó rule, which ruined several drivers’ races in 2007 and 2008, is finally being dropped. But today the it has revealed that instead of returning to the pre-2007 safety car rules, drives (and fans) will have … Continue reading The new safety car rules are an improvement but could still go wrong
Drivers will not get penalties for pitting during a safety car period in 2009
Posted onAlianora la Canta’s rigorous analysis of the 2009 sporting rules turned up a surprising and un-announced change. The ‘pit lane closure’ rule has been dropped. The controversial rule required the pit lane to be declared closed at the beginning of a safety car period, and any driver who pitted during that time received a penalty. … Continue reading Drivers will not get penalties for pitting during a safety car period in 2009
The state of Formula 1 in 2008
Posted onThe 2008 Formula 1 season ended on a high on the track – but the shock withdrawal of Honda was a sting in the tail. With 2009 almost upon us it’s time to take stock of F1’s position as one season ends and a new year begins: the quality of the competition, the future of … Continue reading The state of Formula 1 in 2008
The cost cutting plans: tyre warmers ban
Posted onOne of the surprising changes to be announced by the FIA and FOTA was the ban on tyre warmers from the beginning of 2010. These were originally going to be banned for 2009, but the change was dropped following objections from drivers. Why are they now slated to be banned again?
F1 2009: 10 questions for the off-season
Posted onAs the 2008 F1 season ends on a high we now look forward to what should be one of the most fascinating off-seasons for many years. With radical changes to the technical rules, fraught political tension between the rule-makers and the teams, and two holes suddenly appearing in the calendar, these are the questions that … Continue reading F1 2009: 10 questions for the off-season
FOTA discusses F1 refuelling ban
Posted onPlease please please please please
Five more pit box blunders (Video)
Posted onFelipe Massa’s accident in the pits at Singapore was dramatic and disastrous. But it wasn’t the first time a drivers’ race was ruined when he reached his pit box. We’ve seen plenty of drivers suffer refuelling fires or knock team members over – but there are other ways to get your pit stop wrong: here’s … Continue reading Five more pit box blunders (Video)
Luca di Montezemolo is right: F1’s safety car rules are humiliating for the sport
Posted onFerrari’s Luca di Montezemolo was not impressed by the role the safety car had to play in Singapore: When we race on tracks where staging a circus or something else would be better, anything can happen, because the spectacle is supplied by the Safety Car. This is humiliating for F1. Montezemolo may be sore about … Continue reading Luca di Montezemolo is right: F1’s safety car rules are humiliating for the sport
Refuelling rig fires and failures hit race
2008 Hungarian Grand Prix
Posted onSeveral drivers had their Hungarian Grand Prix spoiled by problems with the refuelling equipment – which worryingly caused a number of fires. Sebastien Bourdais, Rubens Barrichello and Nico Rosberg were among the drivers affected. But what was the cause of the problems?
Video: KERS gives BMW mechanic shock
Posted onHere’s a video showing how a BMW mechanic suffered an electric shock and was thrown to the ground when he touched a car fitted with a Kinetic Energy Recovery System (KERS): The incident occured during testing at Jerez last week. Links below.
New safety car rules for French GP
Posted onF1 is likely to have a new procedure in place for what drivers are supposed to do in the event of a safety car deployment in time for the next round at Magny-Cours. A trial of the new system will be held before the race. The plan is that, when the safety car is deployed, … Continue reading New safety car rules for French GP
Why do million-dollar F1 drivers keep making mistakes at red lights?
Posted onLewis Hamilton would be best advised to skip today’s newspapers. Unless he wants to read several unfortunate comparisons between his father’s prang in a Porsche last week and his crash with Kimi Raikkonen in the pits (see video here). Hamilton is not the only F1 driver to have messed up at a red light in … Continue reading Why do million-dollar F1 drivers keep making mistakes at red lights?
Tyre warmers set for 2009 ban
Posted onBridgestone is standing firm by its desire to see tyre warmers banned next year despite strong opposition from some teams and drivers. Director of motorsport tyre development Hirohide Hamashima said: Bridgestone has said to the FIA that we have confidence in (producing) a good specification of tyres, in terms of grip and handling, without tyre … Continue reading Tyre warmers set for 2009 ban
Has the FIA superlicence price hike caused a split within the GPDA?
Posted onSomething odd is going on with the Grand Prix Drivers’ Association at the moment. There have been stories going around since last year about some of its members being unhappy that certain drivers haven’t joined what is effectively the drivers’ union. The driver mentioned most often has been Lewis Hamilton, who over the weekend denied … Continue reading Has the FIA superlicence price hike caused a split within the GPDA?