A few questions answered re: Aussie GP

I looked up the answers to some questions I had after watching the race.

Why did HK let FA pass him?
HK- " I managed to get past Fernando but then as I tore off a visor strip on the main straight I accidentally hit the pit lane speed limiter button and Fernando managed to get past me again."

Why was JT dancing in his seat like he had ant's in his pants?
JT- “From early on in the race the battery was too hot. Then when I stopped in the pits it just gave up."

Why did SV have such a bad start?
SV- "My problems began at the start when I stalled."

Why did FM go off the track after turn 1?
FM- "At the first corner I lost control of the car while battling with Kovalainen and ended up off the track."

Why did RB pit when pit lane was closed?
Ross Brawn-"We had no alternative but to continue to bring him in because he was out of fuel, although we realised that the pit lane was going to be closed due to the safety car and that this would result in a ten-second stop-go penalty."

Why did TG start 19th when he qualified 9th?
Timo Glock was penalized for a gear box change, and then for impeding MW durring qualifiing.


That's all.

Didn't Rosss Brawn know the red light at pit exit would be a DQ and not a 10 second penalty? I think the rule is you can fix your car, but if you fuel, then it's a 10 second penalty? When do they close/open pit exit durring a safety car?

 

Why didn't Barrichello stop his car on the pit exit line, like any racing driver shown a red light and wait until it was again green.

If he had done this he would not have been DQ ... and maybe not got any points, but that is his teams fault for miscalculating not him.
Pete

 

Ever watch a hockey game, soccer, NBA basketball? Just like in any sport, you take a chance that no one is watching.

 

I have not watched many games like the ones you have mentioned, but there is a dangerous difference. A red light/flag on a race track means that there has been a serious accident, and you are to stop (in this case the red light was only shown in the pits) ... ignoring it is hardly clever. Barrichello should actually be reprimanded for this, as it is a track safety basic.

Pete

 

The speculation from Speed TV was that Rubens was looking in his mirrors at the mess in his pit area instead of at the lights. (I'd guess that the pull from the fuel hose popping loose would have been noticable, so he might have been looking to see if his fuel door was missing or stuck open -- or if his car was on fire from spilled fuel (which we've seen happen before).)

But a european viewer here mentioned that, from the video he saw, the light turned red just as Rubens was approaching, so there wasn't much time to react. (Maybe they need a yellow light.)

At Canada, last year, an explanation was that that they close the pit exit when the safety car is coming around, so a car leaving the pits isn't trying to shove into line.

As I've heard it, the whole thing about closing the pit lane under the SC was to keep everyone from trying to dive immediately into the pits in an effort to get back out and jump into line before the cars bunched up. You might call that a safety issue, with all the cars collecting in the pits, or racing at the pit exit. (Remember all the drive-thru penalties for crossing the out line?)

But it might have been more to do with the viewers. Under the old rules, the group following the SC was pretty scrambled. You could be leading the group without leading the race.

Under the new rules, they collect cars up into a group per the running order, and then open the pits -- pretty much assuring that you'll wind up behind anyone who doesn't pit (other than those a lap down).

But with the group all bunched up when the pits open, you still get a gaggle of cars entering the pits at the same time -- and trying to beat each other to the pit exit ... which might turn red about when you reach it.

 

update on DC:

David Coulthard says recent designs for F1 rear-view mirrors "suck".

The veteran racer was furious with Ferrari's Felipe Massa after their collision at Albert Park on Sunday, answering "of course" when asked if he knew the Brazilian was trying to pass him.

But Coulthard, 37, is now quoted as suggesting that designers of modern F1 cars are not concerned enough about drivers' rearward visibility.

Red Bull's single seaters, penned by Adrian Newey, are among several in the current field on which the mirrors are mounted on the side pods, some distance from the drivers' eyes, because of the aerodynamic benefits.

It is rumoured that Fernando Alonso demanded to Renault technicians that his mirrors be moved closer to the cockpit for 2008.

"The FIA should realise that you can see almost nothing out of these sidepod mirrors," Coulthard is quoted as saying by Sportnet.

 

This is the odd part. As Timo said he hadn't impeded MW and more importantly MW also said Timo hadn't impeded him. So much for the new Stuarts and rulings.

 

I believe it is the drivers responsibility alone to ensure he exits the pits under green.
They stack up at pit out line so that they enter the track in the order they left their team pit. Waiting in the team area with multiple cars in the pits when the light turns green would be disaterous.

 

Maybe it could help if they place an PITS OPEN or PITS CLOSED on the entry lane as the old and now defunct C.A.R.T. races...

 

or maybe they could stop that stupid rule.
You have to choose between a penalty or runing out of fuel.

 

The pits open pits closed light is different from the red yellow light at the end of the pitlane. Im not even sure if there is an open closed light. This information is relayed to the teams by race control.

The red light at the end of the pitlane is turned on when the safety car is approaching or the train of cars is passing. The cars in the pits have to wait until it has passed.

On an onboard highlight video (which has been taken down) I saw Ruben's full pit stop from his incar cam. The red light changed just before he got to it. I would have been surprised if he did see it. This onboard stuff is only broadcast on German Premiere network, which has more than one channel for the race. On the normal feed (what we see on Speed) we saw a camera pointed down the pitlane at RB approaching; then it turned to show the red light as he crossed the line. You don't see the light turn on though, so it kinda makes it appear that it was on the whole time. Im wondering if the stewards even saw the onboard footage. The team might not have known how close it was either. Rubens says he didn't see the light at all. Im still looking for another clip of this. If I find one, I'll post it here.

 

Ross Braun called him into the pits but I doubt he told RB to run the light.

 

How did his team "miscalculate"? Ross B said Rubens had to pit because he needed fuel.

Also I think it's possible that the light wan't very apparent. Heading up the straight, the camera I was watching from had a lot of glare, I'm sure the red light would have been hard to see.

 

Alright guys, I got a hold of the onboard feed and pulled Ruben's exit out. No sound and heavily compressed to fit on the forum, but the light is still visible in the upper left when it comes on. Here it is, judge for yourself.

In my mind, no way could he be expected to stop.
View attachment rubensonboard2.avi

 

Perhaps they should add a yellow or have the red and green flash {at the same time} to signal the upcoming red light. Have thwem both flash for 2 or 3 seconds and then go to the solid red and have it cast in stone that "when the red light is on, no driver shall proceed".

P.S. I would not have haned down the penalty to RB.