After the Australian Grand Prix held last Sunday, some drivers complained about the too slow pace of the Safety Car. In his defence, the FIA issued a statement.
After the first two grand prixes of the season, the Mercedes-branded Safety Car gave way to the home Aston Martin at the Melbourne grand prix. However, some drivers have criticized the green Safety Car used during the race due to a pace that they say is 'too slow'. In particular, the winner of the race, Charles Leclerc, revealed that he had struggled to keep the tires up to temperature, and this was seen on the restart when by a hair's breadth he was not overtaken by his direct rival Max Verstappen, who, taking advantage of an exit too wide from the last corner of the Monegasque, precisely due to cold rubber, he immediately attempted to overtake without succeeding. Even the reigning world champion has not spared criticism, saying that the Safety Car was 'slow as a turtle'. In addition to this, the pilots also compared it in a pejorative way to its sister role marked Mercedes.
the statement
Faced with the criticisms leveled at the Safety Cars, something which is not new in Formula 1, the FIA deemed it necessary to issue a statement to alleviate the drivers' objections, and explaining the pace held by the car in question:
“In the light of recent comments on the pace of the FIA Formula 1 Safety Car, the FIA wishes to reiterate that the primary function of the FIA Formula 1 Safety Car is obviously, not absolute speed, but the safety of the drivers, stewards and officials. The Safety Car procedures take into account multiple objectives, depending on the incident in question, including the obligation to "group" the cars, organize a recovery of the accident or debris on the track in a safe way, and regulate the pace based on salvage activities that may be underway in one part of the track. The speed of the Safety Car is therefore generally dictated by Race Control, and not limited by the capabilities of the Safety Cars, which are bespoke high performance vehicles prepared by two of the world's top manufacturers, equipped to deal with changing track conditions and driven by a and an extremely experienced and capable co-guide”.
then adds:
“The impact of Safety Car speed on the performance of the cars following is a secondary consideration. The impact is the same between all the competitors who, as always, have the responsibility to always drive safely at all times, based on the conditions of their car and of the circuit".
SOURCE: Formula1 web magazine
