Hamilton under investigation (Fuji)

Flow · Post by **Flow** » 04 Oct 2007, 17:17

Formula One stewards in Shanghai are examining new evidence concerning Lewis Hamilton’s driving behind the safety car in last weekend’s rain-swept Japanese Grand Prix.

The McLaren star was leading the pack awaiting a restart when the two cars immediately behind him - Mark Webber’s Red Bull and Sebastian Vettel’s Toro Rosso - collided, putting both out of the race.

Webber and Vettel both hinted that erratic driving from Hamilton had played a role in their shunt. Video footage is understood to show the championship leader moving to the right of the track and slowing immediately prior to the accident, in which Vettel ran into the back of Webber's car.

"It definitely contributed to Sebastian hitting me up the back because he (Hamilton) wasn't doing what he was supposed to be doing (behind the safety car), clearly," Webber told Thursday’s FIA press conference in China.

Vettel was penalised for his part in the accident and is due to drop ten places on the grid for Sunday's Chinese Grand Prix.

http://www.formula1.com/news/headlines/ ... /6923.html

aawil · Post by **aawil** » 04 Oct 2007, 19:35

The most absurd part is that FOM ordered the removal of the clip from youtube. They have the rights to broadcast video but certainly shouldn't to a privately shot video. Here's the original clip. Put back up by someone else.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_QJurnfxRm4

Racer · Post by **Racer** » 04 Oct 2007, 20:18

i say before, hamilton shut get penalize for that manouvre,
what he did showed or looks like he has a problem, or his car brake up for someway, but he get the speed again and continue, so Mark Webber has to brake hard so he did not pass him, otherwise Mark webber will get penalized for passing Hamilton Behind the SC,
with that action from webber was Vettel to late for braking ontime, and hit Webbber,

lol i say, no points for Hammilton in that Race, get things a bit closer for Championship, looooooooooool

Flow · Post by **Flow** » 04 Oct 2007, 21:05

HOO! great video.

I hate those situation, this means FIA have the full control of who will win championship.

Remove point to Hamilton and still get a close championship. Or put him last at China race and hope that he will get into points and hope that Kimi or Alonzo will score podium to see who will be champ in last race of season? Both will almost have alomost same effect at final.

But im shure that no points will be taken off Hamilton, but a +10 or +22 position on grid for China will be the FIA decision, i put a $5 on that ($US or $CAN, dont care, they are same value these days

)

Firefly · Post by **Firefly** » 04 Oct 2007, 22:07

Grid position penalties are the standard punishment for something like this.

If they took points away it would make the sport look like a comedy show, but i suppose that's nothing new.

Firefly · Post by **Firefly** » 04 Oct 2007, 22:14

Plus penalties for this kind of thing normally happen soon after the race, or the following day. Not four or five days later.

With practice starting in a few hours you'd think they could have made a decision by now.

SteveB · Post by **SteveB** » 04 Oct 2007, 23:50

I agree with that Fly.

Isn't the car directly behind the pace car supposed to be at least 5 car lengths behind?

At that point it looked like Hamilton was going to pass the pace car. LOL

dutch power · Post by **dutch power** » 05 Oct 2007, 00:36

Its already a comedy show last years so what does it matter lol FIA is completely inconsistent and well,.... what can i say

Flow · Post by **Flow** » 05 Oct 2007, 02:03

I just heard at Tv that Hamilton is facing grid position penality for China race if he is found guilty of not folowing the rule to drive cleanly behind the SC at Fuji race.

Flow · Post by **Flow** » 05 Oct 2007, 04:31

Seem that he is facing a 10 position grid penality. Still in position to win the championship if he dont mess up, and if the 2 others are not realy performing.

But middle field is not same as font field.

Dropkick · Post by **Dropkick** » 05 Oct 2007, 11:47

i listened to the bbc radio coverage of the second practice , they did not think lewis would be penalised but who knows what the ferrari international assistance will do

Firefly · Post by **Firefly** » 05 Oct 2007, 11:57

Dropkick wrote:ferrari international assistance

Ferrari International Assistance?

I always thought FIA stood for f**king inconsistant arseholes...

Still no penalty has been decided, and Friday practice is over now. It seems pretty strange that they'd leave it this late to make a decision.

Maybe they'll tell him on the formation lap.

Firefly · Post by **Firefly** » 05 Oct 2007, 13:50

No penalty was given in the end, and Vettel's 10 place grid penalty was also removed.

This was apparently due to the 'extraordinary' conditions, the FIA having never seen rain before.

Flow · Post by **Flow** » 05 Oct 2007, 13:52

Ha shit, the official site of Berni, formula1.com is having a poll on the front page about this :

Do you believe Lewis Hamilton should be penalised over his driving behind the safety car in Japan?

Is this a meter on what pressure they have from public?, lol i hope not.

They dont tell how many voted, but result are like this :

Yes : 63.04%
No : 33.61%
Don't know : 3.34%

Flow · Post by **Flow** » 05 Oct 2007, 13:55

Side related incident at Fuji :

"The International Court of Appeal (ICA) will meet in Paris on Friday, October 12 to review the decision of Japanese Grand Prix stewards to penalise Toro Rosso driver Vitantonio Liuzzi. It will then sit again in London on Wednesday, October 24 to discuss the legality of Prodrive’s planned entry to the 2008 FIA Formula One World Championship.

Liuzzi was handed a 25-second penalty for overtaking Spyker’s Adrian Sutil while yellow flags were being waved during the rain-swept Fuji Speedway race. As a result, the two drivers’ original eighth and ninth places were reversed, meaning Toro Rosso lost their first point of 2007. The team subsequently lodged an appeal."

killahead · Post by **killahead** » 05 Oct 2007, 15:49

great video!
I don't think he deserves a penalty......it is not that Webber gets killed if he passes Hamilton for a few seconds and Vettel might wanna look at the car ahead of him instead of viewing the scenery......

but sure....the conditions were bad......very very bad.....so I guess it is easy to get confused....

Flow · Post by **Flow** » 05 Oct 2007, 19:17

No penalty for Hamilton over Japanese Grand Prix
And Vettel has China grid penalty annulled

"Formula One stewards have chosen not to penalise McLaren’s Lewis Hamilton after an enquiry into his driving behind the safety car in last weekend’s Japanese Grand Prix.

The investigation followed suggestions that erratic driving by Hamilton had been responsible for Toro Rosso’s Sebastian Vettel crashing into the rear of Mark Webber’s Red Bull. Webber and Vettel were running second and third behind Hamilton at the time and both were eliminated in the incident.

Vettel was initially blamed for the shunt and was given a ten-place grid penalty for this weekend's Chinese Grand Prix as a result. However, after hearing evidence from all three drivers, and in light of the unusually severe weather conditions at the time of the accident, the stewards decided that sanctions were not appropriate and reduced Vettel's punishment to a reprimand.

Friday's decision means Hamilton could wrap up the 2007 drivers’ title in China on Sunday."

I will have no personnal comment on this one...

Flow · Post by **Flow** » 06 Oct 2007, 07:00

Ok, i have to say it. You penalized a driver for behing responsible for a crash. Once you review the replay, you notice that the crash was cause by another driver, so you apologized the driver that was tought in fault. But now you put the responsability on another driver, but that one wont be penalized. I still can understand why, but im not convinced from the public video post taht Hamilton was 100% clean on that one.

What would hapend if Vettel would of pass Hamilton? Driver trought for shure, but why was Hamilton so wide and so slow at his right? They should not be able to trottle and brake like they do, they sould be ruled to keep a stalbe speed behind safety car.