The 2020 F1 Season
- Thread starter Tony Lockhart
- Start date
SteveS1
I heard that, pardon?
Another of those little rules suddenly discovered. How to make your sport look silly, just make him tow a caravan and even it up that way.
Stuart Frazer
pfm Member
I think Hamilton has to accept responsibility for the penalties. As the driver, he should know these rules inside out from the drivers briefing and track walk.
It looks like Hamilton will get 3rd, so not all is lost.
SteveS1
I heard that, pardon?
Looking at what he did - trivial v the consequence - effectively race over. Anything that does not advantage a driver, or disadvantage others should not be ruining races. Wouldn't matter who the driver was, it devalues the win. Spectators tune in to watch the best race each other, not stewards apply daft penalties.
Stuart Frazer
pfm Member
I disagree - the rules are the rules and whoever it was would have been penalised as Hamilton was. It wasn't trivial - safety comes first and foremost nowadays and so it should.
By not knowing and abiding by that track rule, Hamilton threw away the race win for himself today. I knew straight away it would be a penalty and I expect, deep down, he did too.
SteveS1
I heard that, pardon?
Yes we'll disagree, people tune in to watch races not pedants applying silly rules. It's not unusual for there to be practice starts in such a location. There was no safety issue over and above those, or the team would have been on his case.
Anyway this applies to all drivers at different times, just disappointed to tune only to find out the race is effectively decided in a portakabin before it even starts.
Stuart Frazer
pfm Member
Stand back and think about it properly. If they let LH off with breaking a safety rule, then it sets a precedent for all subsequential such rule breaking to go without a penalty. The Race Stewards set such rules for a safety reason, not to be silly. All the other drivers managed to abide by this rule - it is and should be no different for LH.
SteveS1
I heard that, pardon?
Who said "let him off"? There are sanctions short of ruining a race. I agree it should be no different for any driver and never suggested otherwise. Perhaps you ought to pause and think about it if you are going to project.
narabdela
who?
Daft? In your opinion, or that of people people who know what they're talking about?
All sports impose rules that the competitors are expected to adhere to. F1 is no different.
SteveS1
I heard that, pardon?
Yes and I'm sure you know them all. Did you actually see what he did?
tones
Tones deaf
I'm not so sure - he did ask the pit "Where is that in the rule book?" when he was informed of the penalty, but that might have been in hope that it could be changed. However, as you say, rules are rules, and are there to be followed. In any case, given the tyre strategy he was on, I suspect that second would have the best he could have hoped for. As he's now only two penalty points away from a race ban, I guess he and the team need to digest the rule book.
SteveS1
I heard that, pardon?
The part that baffles me is he was supposed to have transgressed twice. The footage showed him doing it once, then driving off - so presumably he went on to complete at least a full lap, possibly more. If that's the case, why was he (or the team) not alerted immediately after he fell foul of it the first time? If safety is the concern.
I doubt it as otherwise he wouldn't have done it...doh!. You're not a fan of Hamilton, but you're letting that cloud your judgement here. He made a mistake for whatever reason and was rightly penalised, but the penalty is daft, it should've been a 5 second stop go and one penalty point. At the end of the day it will be a mere blip on his way to title number 7 and as much as Bottas thinks he has answered his critics he did not beat Hamilton on the track in a non-compromised battle.... when he starts doing that regularly then he will stop getting criticised. I like Bottas, he's a genuinely nice guy and a very good driver, but he will never beat Hamilton over a season and he knows it!
SteveS1
I heard that, pardon?
Ah ha.
clivem2
pfm Member
I see there is room for misinterpretation with the race director's notes about practice starts....they say "after the lights", not immediately after. However I don't believe it's normal to do such starts at the end of the filter lane. Legally Merc may have a point but realistically most of us would have thought it's wrong. 2 penalties though are excessive.
Stuart Frazer
pfm Member
I'm a huge fan of Hamilton, I have been since day 1 when he joined F1. However, there are things the driver needs to be responsible for - track limits, practice start areas etc. all of which will be covered on the drivers brief and track walk. Hamilton needs to take responsibility for this one.
I understand the 2 penalties were because he did it twice on 2 separate occasions.
It won't affect the overall championship, but Hamilton has now lost 2 wins this season for 2 rule breaks. The Monza rule was difficult to see - I think the FIA needed to be clearer on that Pit Lane Closure. Wins are wins that count towards your records when you leave the sport and look back. Those 2 wins that got away would rile me.
Never, introduced in 2014 no one has ever accrued the 12 points needed in a calendar year, Vettel came closest recently.