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發表於 2010-5-18 08:21 AM
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[世界賽車比賽] Penalty drops former champ Michael Schumacher to 12th, Mercedes appeals
Mercedes motorsport boss Norbert Haug says the team is convinced its interpretation of the safety-car rules is the correct one, and Ross Brawn has appealed the decision that led to Michael Schumacher losing his sixth-place finish in Monaco after he passed Fernando Alonso on the last corner.
The rule says that if the race finishes when the safety car is deployed, it will come into the pits and the cars will cross the line without overtaking.
However, there is a dispute over the wording. The Mercedes view is that the safety car was not deployed as its lights were out, it came into the pits, and the green flag was waved.
While it's clear what the FIA's intent was when the rules were written, there is obviously a conflict. The problem is a new one because from this year, drivers can overtake after the first safety-car line--in other words, before the start line, after a "normal" safety-car withdrawal.
This was the first time there has been a situation where the race finished under a safety car, leaving open the possible interpretation that overtaking might be possible between the last corner and the flag. However, the FIA has made it clear that passing should not be allowed.
The key consideration is that the safety car can go into the pits on the last lap when the track is not yet clear (it was in this case), and thus in theory, drivers could be racing past an accident scene on the pit straight. That clearly cannot happen.
Haug told AW that Schumacher was convinced he was in the right: “He thought, "It's green, safety car in, the race is on, I can overtake after the safety-car line.' Which looked smart and was our interpretation, and obviously it was not the FIA interpretation.
“We have a different one, and that's why Ross wants to appeal. He spoke with the specialists. Certainly I know the rules, but I am not a rules specialist.”
The team has in effect bought time and on reflection could yet withdraw the appeal. In addition, the FIA has to decide whether the appeal is admissible, as in theory drive-throughs, even those applied as retropective time penalties, cannot be appealed. One exception involved Jarno Trulli in Australia last year.
“You have to cover and support the decisions, that's for sure,” said Haug. "Whether it will be withdrawn or not, is a different matter.”
For the moment, Schumacher lost the points he scored in Monaco after a penalty dropped him to 12th place. Mark Webber won the race for Red Bull.
Schumacher was given a retrospective drive-through, which meant 20 seconds was added to his race time.
Fernando Alonso is now sixth, Nico Rosberg seventh, Adrian Sutil eighth, Tonio Liuzzi ninth and Sébastien Buemi gets a point in 10th. |
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