All articles tagged with #safety car
Pole-sitter Antonelli led early in a weather-threatened Miami Grand Prix that started ahead of schedule due to storms; Leclerc soon took the helm as the race featured safety-car periods and crashes (Hadjar, Gasly) and various position swaps among Norris, Piastri and Verstappen, while rain was forecast to arrive around lap 25, potentially disrupting the event.
The article discusses the portrayal of aggressive and sometimes controversial racing tactics in the movie 'F1: The Movie,' including deliberate crashes, and compares them to real F1 practices, highlighting the sport's team dynamics, safety protocols, and physical demands on drivers. It also critiques the film's character development and its depiction of women in F1.
George Russell's victory at the Canadian Grand Prix was upheld after Red Bull's protest regarding his driving under the Safety Car was rejected by the stewards, who found no evidence of erratic or unsportsmanlike behavior.
At the halfway point of the 2025 Le Mans 24 Hours, Porsche's #6 leads after a safety car period caused by a crash, with Ferrari and Toyota close behind. The race saw strategic shifts, penalties, and a major crash that shook up the order, setting the stage for an intense second half.
Lando Norris faced a severe penalty at the Qatar Grand Prix for not slowing down under double yellow flags, a situation exacerbated by race control's delayed response to a loose wing mirror on Alexander Albon's car. The incident, which should have prompted an immediate Safety Car deployment, led to chaos and punctures for other drivers. Norris's penalty, served 14 laps after the incident, significantly impacted his race, highlighting inconsistencies in race management and raising questions about the Williams car's safety standards.
A safety car rule nearly jeopardized Red Bull's strategy during Max Verstappen's victory at the Qatar Grand Prix.
Max Verstappen claimed victory at the 2024 Qatar Grand Prix, overcoming a one-place penalty and three Safety Car interruptions. Charles Leclerc finished second, with Oscar Piastri securing third. Lando Norris, who initially battled for the lead, received a penalty that dropped him to 10th. The race saw multiple incidents, including a first-lap crash involving Franco Colapinto, Esteban Ocon, and Nico Hulkenberg, leading to several retirements.
Aston Martin has unveiled a new 656-horsepower Vantage F1 safety car to address complaints about the previous model's pace, with improved aero, Recaro Pole Position bucket seats, and a digital rear-view mirror display. The powertrain, cooling package, and brakes remain unchanged from the standard Vantage street car, and early feedback from Formula One safety car driver Bernd Mayländer has been positive. While it may not outpace the Mercedes-AMG GT Black Series safety car, the updated Vantage is expected to narrow the gap and will be seen on FIA Grade 1 circuits this year.
Aston Martin has unveiled the new Vantage Safety Car, set to be used at half of this year's Formula 1 races. The car features a four-litre V8 twin-turbo engine, 30% more powerful than its predecessor, and has been adapted with FIA equipment and refined aerodynamics. Bernd Maylander, the FIA's F1 Safety Car driver, praised the car's improved handling and power. This marks Aston Martin's fourth year as a supplier of the F1 Safety Car, and they also provide a Medical Car based on their DBX707 model.
The organizers of the 24 Hours of Le Mans have revised the safety car procedure for the 2024 race, eliminating the 'drop-back' element introduced in 2023. The new system aims to address the criticism that restarts took too long, with the previous procedures often taking up to 20 minutes before racing could resume. The 'merge' and 'pass-around' procedures will remain in place, allowing cars from different classes to restart together. The changes aim to prevent battles from being split up and improve the flow of the race.
The 2023 Le Mans 24 Hours was a gripping race, with Ferrari winning in the centenary edition of the race. However, the hypercar class's balance of performance (BoP) leaves some uneasy, as it could become a competition in which manufacturers take turns. The safety car procedure was also confusing for fans, and more testing and trials of different systems could be done ahead of the race to make sure the explanation to the fans is clearer. Le Mans needs to figure out a good way to deliver the basics of the information available to the experts in a consistent visual way to make it more rewarding for casual viewers.
IMSA drivers have defended the new Le Mans safety car changes, which will see the entire 62-car field packed up behind a single safety car following full-course cautions for the first time. The changes will allow cars that have fallen a lap behind their class leaders to gain a lap back via a ‘wave-by’, which is already used in IMSA, while another procedure called the ‘drop back’ will keep the LMP2s and GTE Ams separated from the Hypercars on restarts. Drivers believe the new rules will help to keep the race for the overall win closer until the end and avoid instances where safety cars split up the field.
Nico Hulkenberg described Alex Albon's crash at the Australian Grand Prix as a "code brown" moment, narrowly avoiding the stricken Red Bull. Hulkenberg eventually finished seventh, scoring his first points of the season.
Mercedes team principal Toto Wolff has called for Formula 1 to better define when to use red flags during races. The recent Melbourne GP was dominated by three in-race red flags, leading to lengthy delays and chaotic standing restarts, which eliminated several drivers. Wolff thinks F1 needs to do a better job defining when a race must be stopped and when a physical or virtual safety car is enough to clear an incident safely. He suggested defining what is a VSC, what is a safety car and what is a red flag.
F1 stewards have rejected Haas' protest over the Australian GP result, which was based on the regulations not being correctly applied in determining the order for the final safety car restart that decided the finishing positions. The stewards felt that in the interests of keeping the grand prix running as promptly as possible, it was best to use the starting grid as the restart order.