FIA: No change in stewards’ approach since Vettel penalty

Formula 1 race director Michael Masi says there has been no change in the stewards’ handling of on-track incidents in the wake of Sebastian Vettel’s controversial Canada penalty.

The FIA-appointed stewards faced a backlash after penalising Vettel for unsafely rejoining the track in Canada three weeks ago, costing the Ferrari driver the race win.

Further discussions about the strict nature of F1’s rulebook followed last weekend in France after Daniel Ricciardo was hit with a penalty during a last-lap scrap with three other cars.

Masi stressed nothing had changed in how the stewards were approaching cases since the Vettel incident, but said he was open to revisiting how the rules were written for next year.

“No, we treat them exactly the same. My rule is that we’ve got a rulebook there, and the rulebook is the one that we’ve got for the entire 2019 season,” Masi said.

“I don’t think it would be wise in any sport to change anything mid-year. Is it something like any rulebook that you can look at moving forward? Absolutely. We’re always constantly evolving with everything.

Asked if there could be changes for 2020 with support from the teams, Masi agreed, saying: “I think if all the teams agree with it, no different to any other set of regulations.

“But there’s also the International Sporting Code that has its provisions in it that are also used from a code of driving conduct side. So that’s got it’s own process which obviously isn’t just Formula 1-specific, it’s for the entire sport.

“It’s something we will look at collectively and jointly.”

While the deadline has passed for changes to be made to the regulations for next year, alterations are permitted so long as there is unanimous agreement between the teams.