VERSTAPPEN SAFETY CAR TACTICS CLAMPDOWN
The FIA has clarified Formula 1’s safety car restart rules to prevent drivers employing tactics such as the side-by-side move Max Verstappen has used twice against Charles Leclerc in 2022.
Verstappen drew alongside Leclerc in Bahrain and Jeddah as they approached the final corners before the restart once the safety car had moved ahead to return to the pits.
Ahead of qualifying for last weekend’s Australian Grand Prix, race director Niels Wittich issued updated event notes that highlighted Article 55.14 of F1’s sporting rules, to reinforce its meaning to the drivers and teams and therefore clamp down on such moves.
Autosport sources have indicated that the clampdown is also related to various manoeuvres drivers have been employing at safety car restarts, as well as those of Verstappen, but that his tactic is simply a high-profile example.
The stewards also suggested a further review of the safety car protocols following Mick Schumacher’s near-miss with Yuki Tsunoda in Australia, and that it needs to be “a point of emphasis in future driver briefings, to ensure the drivers agree on how best to address this challenge before an unfortunate incident occurs”.