GT3DE

I'd have skipped the whole trophy podium after that BS if I were Seb

MSR Racer

Obviously, Hamilton is the better of the two but they are both miltiple world champions and we want to see them battle without stewards intervening to this extent!

i think that is consensus of the majority including former F1 champs!!

enduro911

I missed the GP and was going to simply confirm the MB win on my phone but a friend flipped me video of the incident with a spoiler indicating VET was penalized. Two comments:

- The FIA has always been partial against those who they don't like. Some will say this was Senna in his day. Ron Dennis was the target of Max Moseley for a while which resulted in the FIA joke (Ferrari International Assistance). Ferrari got their fair share of breaks. Now, I think VET has crossed into their gun sites. I almost think that they looked as his behavior in Baku a while back and made a mental note to not let him get away with anything, or maybe "even up the score". Conspiracy theory? Yes, but I've heard further-fetched musings.

- As I indicated in the "Mercedes Championship" thread, the sport is in deep trouble. This kind of bogus favoritism has always been a part of the sport. However, the racing is terrible and if people are teetering on whether to spend their time elsewhere, this is another loss. Furthermore, I think it sets precedent for not having aggressive racing. Anyone here used to watch Arrested Development?

okie981

Meanwhile, IndyCar seems to be picking up slightly in popularity, or is that just my imagination?

ProCoach

It’s certainly better racing, but still no butts in the spectator seats...

ProCoach

No. Not real-time and not more than being able to review driver inputs on the streaming video, not scientific in any way.

They made the decision while cars were on the track, which makes me believe that there was no detailed review or study of side-by-side driver inputs or anything else before the penalty was issued.

rsabeebe

pathetic outcome. no one thought that would be penalized. poor, poor choice by the stewards and just continuing to run fans away from F1. it used to be so great to watch - it's a shame it's what it is today.

disden

Maybe I can get an F1 steward job. I have as many combined F1 wins as the stewards last weekend. Ridiculous call. motorsports are dying and calls like this are not helping.

Veloce Raptor

Every time I start to give in and consider watching F1 again (I haven't watched in 3 or 4 years), something moronic like this debacle happens.

Bravo, dipschits!

DTMiller

The stewards apparently found he intentionally moved onto the racing line after looking to see where Hamilton was after Vettel regained control of the car.

disden

I guess its not racing then, sounds more like a DE. again not sure why anyone would watch this anymore. Moved onto the racing line? You've got to be freaking kidding me.

DTMiller

Well, I think the Vettel argument is he was just trying to save the car so he can't be responsible for an unsafe reentry. Some in this thread reject that reasoning and some don't.

But if he regains control and then drives the car onto the racing line after being off track causing a near collision that's a textbook unsafe reentry and the penalty is valid, is the counter argument. That's the penalty Max got in the incident with RAI last year.

Akunob

I understand that ruling like this can be frustrating and it perplexes even die-hard true F1 fans however these are the rules. When it comes to assessing time penalties in F1, race control and the stewards are very concerned with ensuring that offending drivers do NOT gain a "sporting advantage" following an incident of their own making. Anything less and it would incentivize reckless/unsafe behavior in the name of 'racing'. It may suck but it helps the sport maintain a safety standard that is critical for cars traveling well over 200mph.

Eitherway, it doesn't change the fact that Vettel made an unforced error while in the lead with no car around him! He needs to fix that if he is to regain championship form and his mojo!!

LuigiVampa

Emanuele Pirro was one of the stewards. I just can't believe another race car driver made a decision like this but perhaps they looked at the data and saw something that we cannot see on TV.

Akunob

Here you go.. https://www.motorsport.com/f1/news/r...anada/4461461/

In F1, drivers have a responsibility to operate their vehicles in a "safe manner" relative to other drivers/cars in the race and the stewards are there to ensure that unsafe operations do not yield a "sporting advantage" to the perpetrator. Anything less and we would see cowboy/reckless behavior on track at F1 races. Personally I would have liked the stewards to have instructed Vettel to let Hamilton pass and then Vettel would have 20 laps or so to try for an overtake. The rules called for a 5 secs penalty so that is what was assessed. On track, whether it be F1 or HPDE we have to understand and enforce the rules for the safety of all participants. Vettel messed up and got penalized..fair and square. Tough break however he was the one who put his car in the grass to begin with!