Sunday’s (Dec. 1) Formula 1 Qatar Grand Prix was a mess from an officiating standpoint and calls into question the overall stability of the FIA.
It should be stressed that there is a process to how F1 is officiated. The race director is in charge of only the operations of a race. Their job is to call balls and strikes.
It falls on the stewards to investigate situations and assess potential penalties. They operate independently of the race director, who also operates independently of them.
On lap 30, double yellow flags were displayed in sector two, then taken away, then displayed and taken away again three more times. It was also noted that sector two had a slippery track surface.
A wing mirror came off one of the cars and landed right off of the racing line at the end of the pit straight.
LAP 31 / 57
McLaren tell Norris to push and close the gap to Verstappen – and he puts in the fastest lap of the race! 🟣#F1 #QatarGP pic.twitter.com/HpxkQ2xpIR
— Formula 1 (@F1) December 1, 2024
This is not a great place on the racetrack for that to happen, as cars enter turn 1 at speeds over 200 mph. Teams in the pit lane prepared for a potential safety car.
And yet, instead of calling that or even just a virtual safety car so that a marshall could run out and grab it, the race director had the green flag displayed on lap 32. Noting the sector as being all clear.
First, Valtteri Bottas hit the mirror. Thankfully, it did not seem to seriously damage his Sauber, but it did spread a lot of debris onto the track.
LAP 34 / 57
PUNCTURES FOR LEWIS HAMILTON AND CARLOS SAINZ! 💥
🟡 SAFETY CAR DEPLOYED 🟡#F1 #QatarGP pic.twitter.com/jj8xDVxcm9
— Formula 1 (@F1) December 1, 2024
This was evidenced a lap later, when Lewis Hamilton and Carlos Sainz both got punctures from the debris. Both were able to make it to the pit lane, but brought out a Safety Car, meaning the debris could finally be cleared.
During the double yellow flag fiasco, Lando Norris, in second place, did not slow down at all. This warranted a penalty that Norris recieved on lap 44.
A race-defining moment for Lando Norris 👀
A stop/go penalty for failing to slow under yellow flags ended his chance of victory today ❌#F1 #QatarGP pic.twitter.com/MieWsKU215
— Formula 1 (@F1) December 1, 2024
What penalty did the stewards hand down? A 10-second stop-and-go penalty for failing to slow under yellow flags.
It has been a very long time since anybody…
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