I am fed up with Wolff and Hamilton. The biggest problem with impolite people is not knowing they are impolite, and that, you simply cannot repair it. No matter how many F1 wins you have got, they are still classless boors. At least Hamilton, being British, and having started in that wonderful UK class system, ought to have known all about that. He must think he has risen ? Wake up Lew, you are a bad example to a lot of impressionable children, not to mention the 'paying fans'. I have met many lovely people in English pubs in questionable environs that are way better than you. Class, my friends, as it has but disappeared from the world, you would think these 2 characters, might have had some. Too bad Neubauer is not around to show them. Losers. Regards, Alberto
i am willing to bet that it was probably part of the terms of dropping the appeal. F1 has had a lot of blowback because of this controversy, and they needed Merc to throw them a bone by not further pursuing it. I’m certain the stance taken by Hamilton and Wolff will go unpunished. In essence, they are saying ‘we honor the championship won by Max but we disapprove of Masi and his botching of the procedures’. I find no issues with their stance. They wrote a public congrats to Max. What more is needed from them?
I can’t wait got masi’s interview/stance which will Surely happen one day! It will be explosive Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
Hmm perhaps too early? JA not part of press conference, nether is bottas as he is still representing Mercedes. Orders from Mercedes?
Personally, Hamilton can go back to go-karts for what I care, and he can teach children politeness. How much fun to see the difference of what truly makes a World Champion. Just look back in history, this character, really takes the price of all you do not want to exist in education. Maybe HM will take away any title that potentially means anything, if at all nowadays in the UK. A good one might be the OBM (order of bad manners). Regards, Alberto
Section 15.3 lies at the heart of any argument seeking to justify Michael Masi's decision making process at the conclusion of the Grand Prix. I submit that this section has been misinterpreted by several posters here as well as by the FIA (not unintentionally) in order to deny Mercedes' appeal. The phrase "overriding authority" read in the context of the surrounding phrases does not mean that the Race Director has unfettered decision making ability in respect of the safety car under 15.3(e) but rather that the Clerk of the Course can make decisions in this area only with the RD's express consent. Accepting the premise that 15.3(e) gives the RD absolute control over the safety car would likewise require one to accept that the RD could rely upon 15.3(d) to make whatever decisions he likes for altering the starting procedure(38.1-38.11). The absurdity of the idea that 15.3 imparts this type of authority to the RD should be evident on its face. I also point the reader to 2.1 - quoted below in its entirety-which is irreconcilable with the notion that 15.3 provides the RD authority to modify wide swaths of the Sporting Regulations as he sees fit. Highlights are my own and added for emphasis. “All drivers, Competitors and officials participating in the Championship undertake, on behalf of themselves, their employees, agents and suppliers, to observe all the provisions assupplemented or amended of the International Sporting Code (the Code), the Formula OneTechnical Regulations (Technical Regulations), the Formula One Financial Regulations (Financial Regulations) and the present Sporting Regulations together referred to as “the Regulations”.” Taken together, these examples lead to the unavoidable conclusion that whatever decisions the RD takes must comply with the Sporting Regulations. The RD had several legitimate options for handling the aftermath of the Latifi incident, all clearly permitted by both the Sporting Regulations (mainly via 48.12 and 48.13) as well as by precedent. As the minutes ticked away, these options started to disappear, one by one. When the time for the restart arrived, a finish under the safety car or a single lap sprint with 5 lapped cars between Hamilton and Verstappen were the two remaining options available under the relevant sections of the Regulations. Instead, the RD twisted himself into an intellectual pretzel to conjure a completely novel start procedure for no discernable reason other than to provide the most exciting finish possible. That the officials influenced the outcome of the championship at such a critical juncture by ignoring (or making up) the rules in order to spice up the show is what I-and others I suspect- find objectionable in this affair. Best Regards, Paul PS. Congratulations to Max and hope that Lewis gives them hell next year.
I found it objectionable each time they influenced the outcome of the championship all year long. Where was your outrage then?
Yes, but the steward override would by definition supersede this rule. Hence at "overriding authority" clause in 15.3 Not saying it's right, just that I didn't see any rule violated. Sort of like if a ref ends a boxing fight prematurely. Not saying the 'ref' did the right thing here, simply that they have the prerogative to do so.
Every time officials are called upon to make a decision they influence outcomes, in sport as elsewhere. I can accept a decision permitted by the rules even if I disagree with it. I don't accept the validity of decisions made and justified by inventing the rules as you go. Best Regards, Paul
Well said, from another "Paul" I'm thinking that Hamilton got robbed here by a 'bad call' - I admit I'm torn. I like Hamilton but dislike Mercedes. I like Red Bull but don't like Max. I can say, the true hero to me is Checo. Max needs to buy him a nice watch.
Masi after 2020 Eifel GP: "There's a requirement in the sporting regulations to wave ALL the lapped car past. Therefore the Safety Car period was a bit longer than what we would have normally expected" This time he was too busy stealing a championship so he changed his mind on the last lap
Don't fault Masi. He just thought any meant all then. Afterwards he thought all meant any. Then any means any. All he did was change any to all, then changed any back to any.
Thank you, for a well-reasoned post! But i'm sure you would agree, that 15.3 surely gives the Race Director the final authority regarding the application or interpretation of rules that might involve some possible ambiguity (such as "any" vs "all"). Further, 15.3 and 48.13, in combination, clearly give the Race Director the authority to decide when the safety car ends. Does that mean the Race Director is given the power to make flatly stupid, dangerous, life-threatening decisions? Of course it does ... but, at some point, all participants and fans must trust the intention and ability of the Race Director to make safe, sound decisions ... just as we "trust" that no driver will engage in a race with the singular intention of killing another driver (drivers are given decision-making power over lethal machinery every second of every race). In short, the argument that "The rules can't possibly give so much power to the Race Director ... what if he decides xyz?" doesn't really withstand scrutiny ... at the end of the day, this IS a very dangerous sport, with life-threatening consequences from human decisions every single second. Finally, your conclusion is heavily biased: "That the officials influenced the outcome of the championship at such a critical juncture by ignoring (or making up) the rules in order to spice up the show is what I-and others I suspect- find objectionable in this affair." The very same can be said of the first lap of the final race ... or any number of laps, of any number of previous races. ALL points from ALL races contribute equally to the championship, afterall.
What would have happened if Hamilton actually won the race? Would you still accuse Masi of rigging the championship in favor of Max?
