Abu Dhabi GP

[Ants]

Lewis scored 25 points in Brazil, so not sure what Max got away with there? The incident on lap 48 was just hard racing, and I doubt that Hamilton would have made the corner. Hamilton has no qualms in pushing the other driver wide if he has the inside line.
Lewis was also gifted a net points gain in Azerbaijan when Max lost 25 points due to the tyre failure.

Full disclosure - I am biased as my Brother builds the Red Bull car (not the whole car )

[inaglasshouse]

On a general point, under the safety car the lapped cars are usually let threw, but I don't see any point it letting those behind the front runners threw as they're not interfering with the racing. That's probably a rule change that should be added.

Um, define front runner! Might seem no point to you, but I bet Sainz (running third) would see a point in the race director clearing out the two cars between him and Verstappen (which didn't happen, obvs).
They are all racing...

[Ants]

Agreed.

[knapmann]

The whole furore is all from people who dont have a clue about F1 and never watch it normally. Safety cars have decided races thousands of times, just never on the last laps of the last race to decide a title. Lewis was simply very unlucky with the timing of the SC, its just tough luck. Hes won loads of races through getting the rub of the green over the years so cannot complain, Silverstone this year as one example. Anyone who has watched the season from start to finish would know that Max should have had the title sown up a while ago except for very bad luck.

9 times out of 10 the lapped cars are told to pass. That is the expectation of everyone involved that it WILL happen. Whether you agree with this is irrelevant. These rules are made specifically to increase the unpredictability and to regroup the cars so to complain when that is exactly what happens is ridiculous. Indeed if they held the lapped cars the calls that it was rigged would be deafening. The question needs to be why they were told not to do so to begin with. Ultimately the correct decision was made to let them through. There is an argument that they should have all been let through, and yes its a fair point, but it in no way would have affected the end result.

The timing of the safety car meant that once it was called Lewis had an awful decision to make to pit or not, he had everything to lose by pitting so stayed out, and Max had nothing to lose by pitting. "Thats called racing Toto". With them both lapping under the safety car, the lapped cars out of the way (as they should be), Max chomping at the bit, the track clear for racing, the race director had to choose between artificially keeping the SC out and handing the title to Lewis which would have been massively controversial in itself, or allowing them to fight it out.

In the end the decisions were all correct albeit the confusion around the lapped cars has muddied the waters and created controversy where there isnt any in the eyes of non-fans. Im sure Lewis will allude to the fact that he was robbed for years to come but its simply not the case. With the benefit of hindsight he should have pitted and gave up track position but thats easy to say now.

[Sam]

On a general point, under the safety car the lapped cars are usually let threw, but I don't see any point it letting those behind the front runners threw as they're not interfering with the racing. That's probably a rule change that should be added.

Um, define front runner! Might seem no point to you, but I bet Sainz (running third) would see a point in the race director clearing out the two cars between him and Verstappen (which didn't happen, obvs).
They are all racing...

As a man who has only ever competed hard for a mid-field finish I agree entirely. For the driver it matters just as much getting from 8th to 7th as it does 2nd to 1st.

[jeremyg]

https://twitter.com/sophwebsterxx/statu ... 33697?s=21

[Sam]

There is an argument that they should have all been let through, and yes its a fair point, but it in no way would have affected the end result.

The problem isn’t just that the rule says all cars should be let through, the rule also says the safety car should stay out another lap, which it didn’t.

Mercedes are a German team run by a German man, anyone who has ever been to Germany or met a German person for more than 10 minutes knows that written rules are everything to them. To ignore written rules and make it up as you go along is just unfathomable to them.

[Sam]

https://twitter.com/sophwebsterxx/statu ... 33697?s=21

This says it all.

[jeremyg]

Totally agree.

[one-two]

I guess red flag might have been a possibility at one point, but Masi thought - correctly in many respects - that he could get it swept up under yellows and continue. On lapped cars unlapping themselves or not, people understand they would have been blue flagged out of the way immediately after the restart if they hadn't been waved through immediately before? Masi might reasonably claim his option was the safer of the two with the same sporting intent/outcome

[one-two]

For the record, and no other reason, Toto Wolff is Austrian

[Sam]

For the record, and no other reason, Toto Wolff is Austrian

Oh. Similar enough for my point to stand.

[one-two]

This thread is all about the detail. And I am a Scot, btw!

[inaglasshouse]

For the record, and no other reason, Toto Wolff is Austrian

LOLz!

[inaglasshouse]

I'm sure Lewis will allude to the fact that he was robbed for years to come

I doubt it. I think one thing that this season, including its controversial end, shows is that after they get out of the car neither Max or Lewis is interested in complaining about the stewards or their luck. They leave that to others.

2022 will be a new year, new cars, rematch. Two great teams, two great drivers. Looking forward to it already. Shame Honda will have departed.