Suggested alterations to the safety car rules in
Formula 1 have come in for mixed reactions form the sport's drivers, with some even claiming they could make for dangerous situations in the races.
The changes are being trialled following complaints that the current regulations unfairly penalise drivers who are close to running out of fuel when the safety car appears – as happened to
Rubens Barrichello in Australia and
Nick Heidfeld in Spain earlier this year [see separate story –
click here]. That means they have no choice but to pit before the pit-lane has officially re-opened and take the subsequent stop-and-go penalty that accompanies it, or else risk running out of fuel.
Simulated safety car periods – with marshals holding out ‘SC' boards – subsequently took place following Friday practice for both the French and British Grands Prix, with drivers sent a message by race control, using special software for the standard ECU and giving them five seconds to respond by pressing a button.
A target minimum lap time is then calculated and displayed on the driver's dash, which they must monitor as they slowly make their way back to the pits to ensure that the pit-lane has by then opened again. Some drivers, however, have described the new method as distracting and overly-complicated, with
Scuderia Toro Rosso ace Sébastien Bourdais relating that despite his advised lap time, the car in front of him was travelling too slowly.
“It still needs a little more work at the moment,” joint world championship leader
Lewis Hamilton is quoted as having said by international news agency
Reuters.
“It's a bit strange because you have to look at your dash quite a lot,” agreed
Williams'
Nico Rosberg, “and at the same time you're probably going to be passing the incident and everything.
“We do really need to find something to improve the current thing, though. It could be a step forward; we will see.”
Reigning
F1 World Champion
Kimi Raikkonen, by contrast, professed himself happier with the proposed new arrangement.
“I think it could be a good solution,” the Finn stated, “because it puts everyone in the same situation and, that way, you can't be penalised just by unfortunate circumstances.”
