The fallout from the 2024 Formula One USGP rumbles on in the Mexico paddock as drivers and the FIA meet to discuss the penalties issued in Austin, last time out. Whilst the decisions of the stewards did not affect the outcome for the race winner, it did embroil the two primary challengers for the drivers’ title this year.

Lap one, turn one… Max Verstappen found a way up the inside into turn one which saw him control Norris progress. With the Red Bull barreling into the apex of the turn, the McLaren driver had no choice but to avoid Verstappen by leaving the track on the outside of the turn.

This ultimately cost Norris the lead of the race to Charles Leclerc who made hay while the sun shone and disappeared down the track on his way to the chequered flag. Yet there was little surprise at the inaction of the stewards to Max’s muscling in on Lando, given there is a gentleman’s agreement in place that lap one incidents are part of the general chaos of starting a Grand Prix and so the stewards rarely get involved.

 

 

 

FIA track limits problems in COTA

George Russell was penalised early in the race for running Valtteri Bottas off the track in a move remarkably similar to the one Verstappen pulled on Norris at the start. Yuki Tsunoda was similarly penalised for a move on Alex Albon but the biggie only came as the race came to a climax.

On Lap 52 Verstappen was under pressure down the COTA long back straight, with the McLaren driver briefly taking the lead as turn 12 approached. Realising his fate, Max rolled the car into the apex of the turn, braked late and ran wide taking Norris with him.

Lando completed the overtake off the circuit and received the obligatory punishment from the stewards. Yet McLaren believed that Verstappen too would be penalised for his off track excursion and so they failed to tell their driver to give the place back and try again.

The five second time penalty handed to Norris saw him finish the race classified just 0.9 seconds behind Verstappen, affording the Red Bull driver only his fourth podium from the last nine Grand Prix.

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“Lively drivers meeting” in Mexico

Its been the case that the intervening days have seen anyone who is anyone give their opinion on the Norris/Verstappen decision and the discovery for many of a ‘secret’ FIA document which goes unpublished but is the stewarding guidelines on F1 driving standards.

The matter was discussed in Mexico at the weekly meeting between the FIA and the Grand Prix Drivers Association (GPDA). “It was a lively drivers’ meeting in Mexico City overnight and there were direct exchanges between Lando Norris and Max Verstappen about defending and overtaking,” Craig Slater of Sky News reported.

“But I’ve been told they were ‘calm’ and ‘respectful’. The rules of engagement and how to make them better dominated discussions. The majority view among the drivers was standards have to be improved and what is already an ongoing evaluation needs to be stepped up.”

Each year the FIA issues guidelines to the stewards over how they should evaluate certain on track manoeuvres. This document is not published but is collated from input from the experience of the drivers and stewards themselves.

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FIA agree to update stewarding guidelines

The meeting in the Mexico paddock kicked off with a number of drivers asking for clarification of the rules of engagement in particular how they were worked through in relation to the Norris/Verstappen incident at COTA.

“Interestingly, while delivering that explanation the FIA admitted it would draft some updated wordings to the racing guidelines and send that back to the drivers for review,” reports Slater. Apparently some drivers felt this was an admission of guilt for allowing the current guidelines to be exploited so – but most were positive the FIA had been self critical and was seeking to refine its advice to the stewards.

According to Slater there was some confusion as to whether the stewards applied all the potential rules to the Verstappen/Norris incident with one driver suggesting that even the guidelines as they stand would have allowed for Max to be punished for forcing another driver off the track.

Some drivers felt there must be a clear distinction between holding a corner in fair defence and barreling in up the inside to claim the right to the turn at the apex and hope for the best.

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No FIA offer to publish ‘secret’ stewarding document

Slater reveals the drivers understand “ultimately, there is an understanding that the rules will never be perfect. The appetite is to tighten wordings and try to define the guidelines better.”

The FIA reaffirmed their ‘driving standards guidelines’ were devised at the request of the F1 drivers and each year they are edited and sent to the GPDA for sign off; also that the FIA are committed to evolving these guidelines which have already been updated a number of times in recent years.

Sadly, no commitment was made by the FIA to publish this somewhat ‘secret’ document so fans and F1 pundits alike can better understand why certain counter intuitive decisions are made by the race stewards from time to time.

The meeting was adjourned after several hours with the chairman of the GPDA, Alex Wurz, concluding the affair. ”We know and appreciate the stewards’ work.  We know that they have a difficult role and situation. We very much appreciate that we have a good dialogue to first make the decisions more consistent, which definitely is the case, but we now collectively see that there is some more room for improvement,” he said.  

No one wants over-regulation, and we want to see good racing, and the sentiment is, that with a collective push, we will improve the guidelines for next season.’”

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The F1 ‘Austria’ solution

Ferrari’s Charles Leclerc was asked for his thoughts following the lengthy meeting between the FIA and the F1 drivers. “I’m not going to go too much into the detail of what’s discussed inside, but we are all willing to improve some of the scenarios we have seen in Austin because I don’t think we were all on the same line on that,” said the Monegasque.

“However, the FIA has been very open to discussion and I think they’ve admitted that we’ve got to change a few things. Going forward we’ll try and help them in order to take better decisions and to have tracks that maybe don’t allow as much controversy as Austin does.”

Leclerc concluded much the same as has been suggested from various sources that “a bit of a gravel trap or a kerb in some corners, it will make everybody’s life easier, but it’s the way it is.”

The modern circuits designed with the high asphalt run off areas often argue, their venue is for a variety of motor sport events and that top level motorcycle racing does not want gravel on the outside of the corners. Yet a clever interpretation of the gravel traps appeared in Austria this season allowing both F1 cars and MotoGP bikes to share the same unaltered arena.

Small strips of gravel and grass were inserted on the outside of the final two turns, which in 2023 saw some 1200 track limits violations reported. Thankfully the 2024 Austrian Grand Prix was not marred by stewards working late into the night to adjudicate on drivers leaving the circuit and gaining an advantage.

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Brundle puts down Zak Brown

Brundle puts down Zak Brown’s ‘naivety’ – With the Indycar season wrapped up over a month ago, Zak Brown is now an ever present figure for McLaren at each Formula One weekend. The American is currently waging war on Red Bull Racing for using a device that more quickly adjusts the height of the floor at the front of the car.

The FIA were recently called upon to issue their judgement on the legality of the Red Bull component in question which they subsequently stated complied with all the relative design regulations. They did however take the precaution of sealing the Red Bull adjuster for parc ferme purposes, to completely ensure Zak Brown’s accusations were unfulfilled.

Red Bull team principal Christian Horner told Sky Sports on Thursday he believes the FIA has taken action on his team’s cars to “perhaps satisfy some paranoia elsewhere in the paddock”… READ MORE