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Why new race control directive leaves F1 drivers facing tough calls

Why new race control directive leaves F1 drivers facing tough calls

Before last weekend’s Bahrain GP, new FIA race director Niels Wittich laid out the ground rules for how he and his colleague Eduardo Freitas are going to operate this season.

Wittich made it clear that the track is defined by white lines, while also stressing that, when drivers run side-by-side round a corner, the car on the outside has to be left space.

The FIA’s new philosophy will also see reduced radio traffic henceforth between race control and sporting directors on the pit walls.

One specific case that Wittich cited is that the race director will no longer tell teams that a driver has to give a place back if he’s deemed to have left the track and gained an advantage while making a pass, something that happened regularly in the past.

In theory, any such statement was always advisory, as the final decision with applying a penalty always lay with the stewards.

However, if former race director Michael Masi or his predecessor Charlie Whiting sent such a message it meant that you…

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