Time for the FIA to make an example of Vettel?

Yep. Twitter is amusing today . A lot of people with ''#44'' and ''TeamLH'' in their name/profile are jumping to all sorts of conclusions.

The Dutch are upset, because the clowns that run the F1 media are hugely against Ferrari/Vettel (due to the disagreements Max has had with Ferrari, and despite Verstappen/Ferrari guys getting on well!), everyone is now in tears, lol.

Exactly.

 

https://www.instagram.com/p/BWGGRuyjGOE/?taken-by=tillykeeper_zackfan

 

Nice calligraphy

 

If they didn't, it makes CW look toothless.

It was the proper result at the end of the day. Seb was penalized, and the only reason this lingered was because of his recalcitrant behavior. All he had to do was admit to his mistake and commit to keep better control of his emotions going forward.

That's what I suggested the day of the event. This did not need to stay in the news this long.

 

Soooo here's Vettel apology message....
Image Unavailable, Please Login

 

Uh oh, Elton's fans, and elton himself, disagree with Seb getting nothing more than a telling off. I do hope no one on this forum gets upset over it, it's only a sport after all. I hope this doesn't mean that the FIA were really just acting on behalf of Mercedes, rather poor sportsmanship don't you think?

 

Seb still has an anger issue and will do this stuff again. Next time he'll get a ban.

 

You were right too.

All the best,
Andrew.

 

Uh oh. Hamilton liked a post that indicates the poster has no respect for the FIA. That is downright disrespectful and he should have to apologize for agreeing with that post. It sets a bad example for the younger generation that, when you don't get your way, you should have no respect for those who made the decision you don't like...

 

I absolutely agree with that. And whether permitted or not, what Lewis did is equally dangerous as what Vettel did (neither case lead to damage), so the penalty was perfectly appropriate. That it didn't lead to Vettel finishing behind Hamilton has nothing to do with it. That was bad luck on Lewis's part, which was well deserved by many of us.

But it was more than that. Besides the 'community service', it also included: 'no road safety activities should be endorsed by SV until the end of this year'. What the heck does that mean?

I really doubt it. He can't be that stupid. Now that the writing is in the wall, he'll obviously behave. If not, a race ban would be the least of his problems.

On the ruling, just the fact a special hearing was scheduled was BS IMO, since swearing at the race director is not in any form related to bumping another driver. But glad no further punishment was the outcome. Having said that, Seb seems less mentally stable than a decade ago. With a small kid, he shouldn't have any serious marital (or SO) issues right now, plus he has 4 WDCs already, and he's super wealthy, so what the heck can be wrong with his life??? Who knows. But his future racing career is literally on the line if he does any of that again. His only goal should be to take home the most points for the scuderia, and he already squandered 13 last race. Hope he can still win the WDC. Time to focus all his energy on that goal.

 

Forced apologies are always the most honest ones

 

It is more funny to read the comments on the right...the original poster sounds like a girl in the first row of a Take That concert peeing his pants because the one and only LH liked his post...
As for the rest: I do not think LH can complain for being treated unfair by the FIA in the last years so I do not see any evidence why he would have been punished in the way the poster mentions...

Was in Goodwood this weekend and it was refreshing that there are actually a lot of British F1 fans who applauded both Bottas and Rosberg and took their autograph...

 

Maybe he feels more pressure winning the title with Ferrari than he did in the past...

 

The writing wasn't on the wall with 6 penalty points?

The guy has a problem and today didn't resolve it. Quite the opposite.

 

It's 9, but I meant with Todt's threat of going to a tribunal next time. Plus I'm sure Ferrari issued a similar warning.

 

It was 6 before Baku

I hope Ferrari chewed out his ....

 

Does anything pisx anyone off more than a brake check? Yes Seb was pissed. So who jumps off the gas in a corner or exiting. Yeah I believe he thought he was brake checked. Certainly all Sebs fans including Ferrari back him up. My guess is there was no intent to run into elton. He just swerved toward him a little too much to say what"s up?! GTS Bruce

 

Exactly why I've said from the beginning that the apology is what I had the biggest problem with. I remember my sister in law making my three year old niece apologize for pushing a kid down. My niece said "I apologized but I didn't mean it." Even three year olds know it's BS.

 

Yes, people who have no understanding of F1 safety car restart procedures and what happens on EVERY safety car restart where the lead driver has to slow down and let the safety car get a gap before they accelerate to the start line. THOSE people piss me off.

You need to read the whole thread, some people are adamant that Hamilton brake checked Vettel, some say Hamilton's technique was consistent with every safety car restart lap where the lead driver slows down a couple of corners before the start line. Those latter people are correct.

Hell, even Nico Rosberg chimed in today and said that Hamilton did nothing wrong in that restart!

 

I don't believe there was brake checking. My only gripe was with the ruling body going back on its referees' decisions. Glad there was no extra punishment, and hope stewards will be more assertive/well trained with their punishments in the future.

 

Well, I think it's time for this forum to make an example of Ferrari 308 GTB. ANYONE ?!?!

 

I do believe LH was "brake checking" him. However, it was a cresting, blind left hander so there was a gravity/vision component as well. But when you look at the tape, you see the safety car 100 yards or so ahead of LH, nearly out of sight. The rules say 10 cars lengths, no? LH was gapping, not only because he was sighted for being too close before, but to force the pack to slow and gain a power and torque advantage when accelerating after the safety car is removed. He's done it before and it's unsportsmanlike. And doesn't he complain about the safety car going too slowly? Then he rides it's bumper. And then look at the body language of LH during the entire incident and race afterward. He fakes like he didn't feel anything, forcing SV to get his attention. And NO I don't think his "wheel check" was as dangerous as people say. He knew full well the tires would bounce easily in wheel to wheel contact, unlike the crushing catastrophic failures that all kinds of drivers had brought on themselves by hitting the guardrails. I think SV lost his temper and let LH have it, but unlike the cheap "brake check" maneuver, his accurate and inconsequential tire contact was the exact opposite of the fracturing and complicated damage that resulted from the brake check contact. In the pits afterward, LH could hardly look at the cameras or SV and had an expression on his face (head posture) like a kid who knew they were in trouble but was trying to disappear undetected. At least he didn't go running to the marshals like Prost. Yeah, you can call me an SV SF fan boy but SV had plenty of crazy moments back at RB. Look at the video again of the gap to the safety car. It was huge and enough to make every driver behind LH pissed. That doesn't mean SV can loose his cool. But I think LH knew what he was doing and flushed his WDC points in the process. The one saving grace of the whole incident was this, that LH didn't really gain any points by the stunt. And just a while ago LH was talking about real racing. Think about what happened between Senna and Prost. THAT was an intentional crash. And yes SV is frustrated because the SF70 is a great car and deserves to race fair and square. Cut the crap.

 

There is no harsher penalty other than the black flag, no? And the WDC implications? Do the math. It IS the inconsistencies that are pissing people off. This is what made Vettel curse out Charlie in Mexico. Until the FIA gets their act together, it will be dicey. Maybe another penalty can be inserted but it's comical that 10 seconds still left Hamilton behind Vettel.

 

Sigh. John, how current are you in watching modern F1? On the last lap of a safety car period when the safety car is going to enter the pits and release the cars to resume racing at the start finish line, the protocol is that when the safety car turns off it's flashing lights near the end of the lap, the leader no longer is required to be within 10 seconds. Further, in every single safety car period for the last several years, near the end of the restart lap the race leader slows down and lets the safety car build a gap (and is allowed to do so), so that when they do begin full acceleration they will almost but not quite catch up to the safety car as it leaves the track into the pit entrance.

So, to your questions/points -

"The rules say 10 car lengths, no?" The answer is in fact NO. On the restart lap, once the safety car lights go out, the race leader can (and always does) slow down and allow the safety car to increase the gap. In this particular race, on 3 safety car periods, the safety car lights went out just as Hamilton and Vettel were coming through turn 15.

"He's done it before and it's unsportsmanlike" EVERY race leader, not just Hamilton, does it on a safety car restart, and it's not remotely unsportsmanlike, it's the rules and standard operating procedure.

"And doesn't he complain about the safety car going too slowly?" Yes, all the drivers do - but again, that doesn't apply to the specific allowances when the safety car period is about to end and the cars are about to resume racing at the end of the last safety car lap.