- 09 Sep 08, 13:22#63929
Well, i think a lot of us had a feeling he'd have something to say, and unsurprisingly he raises a relevant and valid point.
Sir Jackie Stewart has called for a shake-up in the way Formula 1 races are officiated in the wake of the controversial penalty applied to Lewis Hamilton after the Belgian Grand Prix.
Hamilton won last Sunday’s race at Spa-Francorchamps on the track but was later adjudged to have gained an unfair advantage by cutting a chicane while battling for the lead with Kimi Raikkonen.
The stewards added 25 seconds to Hamilton’s race time, demoting him from first to third place and handing victory to his championship rival Felipe Massa.
The decision was met with incredulity in large sections of the media and drew a hostile response on fan forums and message boards (click here for itv.com/f1’s Talkback on the subject).
Triple world champion Niki Lauda condemned the verdict as landing F1 in its “biggest mess ever” and said it would drive people away from the sport, while fellow legend Sir Stirling Moss branded it “an absolutely appalling decision”.
Stewart, who has often been critical of F1’s governing body the FIA, said the episode underlined the need for greater professionalism and consistency in the way decisions are arrived at.
“This decision raises questions about [the stewards’] ability and, indeed, about the sport’s very governance,” he told the Daily Telegraph.
Like Lauda, Stewart believes the officiating system in F1 – with a permanent FIA race director (Charlie Whiting) and advisor (Alan Donnelly) but different stewards from race to race – has caused inconsistent decision-making and needs to be overhauled.
“F1 attracts the largest capital investment in sport, but it is being overseen by people who are not doing it full-time and we get inconsistent decisions,” said Stewart.
“In football, rugby, tennis or cricket you have professional referees and umpires who do their jobs day in, day out, and you have accountability.
“We need that in motorsport.”
Stewart argued that the decision to penalise Hamilton was unjustified because the McLaren driver ceded the lead back to Raikkonen immediately after short-cutting the Bus Stop chicane.
“Raikkonen behaved very robustly to defend his position and left Hamilton with no option but to miss the chicane,” he said.
“He was simply doing all he could to avoid an accident.
“Yes, he gained a position, but he slowed immediately and handed it back, as the rules require, then passed [Raikkonen] subsequently.
“We saw earlier in the year, at Silverstone, that Raikkonen isn’t comfortable driving his Ferrari in the wet and it was the same on Sunday.
“Hamilton was clearly much faster and was going to pass him sooner or later.
“The stewards should have taken that into account.”
McLaren intends to appeal the verdict but there are doubts about whether a time penalty of this kind – which was in lieu of the drive-through that would have been imposed had the decision been reached during the race – can be subject to appeal.
However, with the decision reducing Hamilton’s championship lead from eight points to two, Stewart believes the stakes are so high that the case must be heard.
“It’s inconceivable that you shouldn’t be able to appeal in a situation like this,” he said.
“It could affect the world championship’s outcome.”
Rising number one of Formula 1, Juan - Juan, one wonders should Juan only win one Formula 1 one year, would Juan have won that one in round one, Juan??
